⠀ Purina Flock Raiser

[ShutterBug4Life]

Hello! I have a flock of mixed ages: 1 year olds, 2 month olds and 1 month olds. The 1 month olds are separate from the older ones, in their brooder. The older sets are in transition to consolidation of their 2 flocks. The 1 year olds have oyster shell provided for them. My question is is it safe or advisable to feed any of these groups this feed? Are there any risks involved? They currently are not free ranging. The flock(s) consist of: White Wyandottes, Buff Orpingtons, Buckeyes, Cuckoo Marans and Amerecaunas (probably Easter Eggers though) Thank you in advance!

Edit to add: these are being raised for eggs, not meat.

 

[ShutterBug4Life]

Bump!

 

[Mrsdymacek]

I was just in the TSC yesterday looking at this feed. I think it is a good feed for a mixed flock but I would look o supplement calcium to your laying age birds if you use it. On the back of the bag, it recommends to switch the Layena when the birds reach laying age, so I assume the main difference between the two is the calcium (and possibly protein).

 

[threescompany]

Hello! I have a flock of mixed ages: 1 year olds, 2 month olds and 1 month olds. The 1 month olds are separate from the older ones, in their brooder. The older sets are in transition to consolidation of their 2 flocks. The 1 year olds have oyster shell provided for them. My question is is it safe or advisable to feed any of these groups this feed? Are there any risks involved? They currently are not free ranging. The flock(s) consist of: White Wyandottes, Buff Orpingtons, Buckeyes, Cuckoo Marans and Amerecaunas (probably Easter Eggers though) Thank you in advance!

Edit to add: these are being raised for eggs, not meat.

From what I understand, Flockraiser is fine if you supplement with calcium, either oyster shell or old eggshells that have been baked and crushed.. http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2011/10/can-you-feed-eggshells-to-chickens.html Your layers will eat the Calcium if they need it and the younger ones won't. When they are all laying you can slowly transition to layer feed. Even though I have all layers and they have laying feed they still use oyster shell if they need it.

 

[ShutterBug4Life]

Thank you! I was hoping I could continue feeding my layers this feed once the flocks are incorporated. The protein level isn't too high for the adults? Thanks for helping.

 

[DrMikelleRoeder]

Hello! I have a flock of mixed ages: 1 year olds, 2 month olds and 1 month olds. The 1 month olds are separate from the older ones, in their brooder. The older sets are in transition to consolidation of their 2 flocks. The 1 year olds have oyster shell provided for them. My question is is it safe or advisable to feed any of these groups this feed? Are there any risks involved? They currently are not free ranging. The flock(s) consist of: White Wyandottes, Buff Orpingtons, Buckeyes, Cuckoo Marans and Amerecaunas (probably Easter Eggers though) Thank you in advance!

Edit to add: these are being raised for eggs, not meat.

Purina

Flock Raiser

Poultry Feed is a great choice for flocks consisting of mixed ages. Because you have some birds that are of layer age, we recommend supplementing oyster shell to support strong egg shells.

Once all birds in your flock reach 18-20 weeks of age, it would be best to transition them over to Purina

Layena

Poultry Feed. Since this product includes calcium, you should not need to supplement with oyster shell. At this point, it would be better to keep the 2-month-old birds separate from the adults. They should be 18 weeks of age before being mixed with adult birds.

If you have additional questions on when to feed various feeds at different stages of life, we have a handy feeding chart on our website – check it out! http://purinamills.com/backyard-poultry/feeding-chart/feeding-chart/

 

[jlpstave]

What happens if meat birds had access to scratch for a day and gorge themselves? Their crop is enlarged and full of all the little seeds.