question about layer feed

[Hiedi]

Hello,

I hope everyone is doing well today.

I am in the process of gradually switching my entire flock over to a layer feed (Dumor). Yesterday they were 17 weeks old. I originally thought my entire flock was pullets. However, I suspect that maybe I have two cockerels because two of them have bigger and brighter-colored wattles and combs. My question is: I know the layer feed is for egg producing poultry, but can I feed the layer feed to the ones that I suspect to be cockerels as well?

Thanks in advance.
~Hiedi

 

[NYREDS]

YES

 

[kirkster5]

My 'suprise' rooster was crowing (well pathetically) at about 8 weeks. Are you sure you have Roo's.

 

[Hiedi]

Quote:
No, I am not for sure. Perhaps I should post a picture of each individual one in the "What breed or Gender is This" section of this forum so I can get other people's opinion. So what you are saying is: they should be crowing and making a lot of noise if they were male at 17 weeks? When I bought them as chicks, I asked for all pullets; but I do realize that is not a 100% guarantee.

 

[keljonma]

Yes, you can feed layer feed to your whole flock. If it is the only thing you're feeding you may see him eat less feed and do more foraging. When we fed layer to the whole flock, we mixed black oil sunflower seed and oats with the feed and the roo ate mostly oats and seeds and foraged.

Or you could feed a flock raiser feed and provide oyster shell separately for the hens. That's what we do for our entire flock - chicks to adults.

BTW, I've had a hen crow once at 6 weeks of age and start laying at 18 weeks. So pics would definitely help.

 

[chickenfever]

Quote:
But I've also heard that some roosters may take months to crow