This is a great topic. Rambling thoughts. . .
Some chicken food crumbles are a mix of out-of-date human & pet foods that are reprocessed to feed our chickens. There are supposed to be regulations in place for livestock feeds (I'm guessing that poultry could be considered livestock, but I wonder). There aren't regulations in place for "petfood", yet some manufacturers smash up these products to become crumbles for chickens. Some of the organic petfood sites have some horrible photos/information as to what might go into pet food.
Feeding natural products is a dream of mine. This discussion is educational. I try not to eat processed foods and try to eat whole grains. So, feeding my chickens scratch with traditional grains and real protein (animal based) sure makes sense. I never thought about grinding up fish carcasses. We do a little fishing. . .that's a great idea.
I personally believe that some of these big corporate producers genetically altered "franken" products may well be dangerous for us and our animals. We do not yet know what these products are doing to our planet. No more honeybees. . .maybe heading for potential disaster. The link provided to the CG feed site did not appear to have a list of the exact products in the feed which I found interesting. I'll admit to using these products even though they scare the heck out of me. The discussion of what traditonal food was fed to chickens is most informative.
Look into the various Universities that have vet programs and most list a bunch of sponsors. . .most are corporate giants that sell products that are so genetically messed up that they will not reproduce. Look at a farm field the next year after some of these crops (from grain spills/or sloppy combine) have sprouted. . .they don't look anything like "corn" or "soybeans" that our ancestors grew. Farmers jailed because they held back seed to replant the next year like their grandparents did. . .only to be sued and loose the family farms. These corporate giants maybe setting us up for a worldwide food shortage with their franken, mono culture crops. Yes, food for the masses, but at what cost? We continue to loose genetic farm animal/plant diversity at a rapid rate--much more rapidly than tigers or trees or other wild things. There are alternatives and some crops that have built up natural resistances but they can't be patented--so they don't make money on the products. It's a world wide issue. The corporate lobbists have been trying to make it illegal for us to save heirloom seeds. They are buying up small seed companies at an alarming rate to control the market place. Educate yourselves. I do what I can to save heirloom seeds and have some heritage livestock. Please do what you can to maintain genetic diversity. . .in animals and plants. Hang on to a breed listed by the ALBC or try to get one of those breeds.
Now that my chickens have trashed parts of my landscaped yard, I let wild bird seed grow and produce seed heads. Millet, milo, sunflower, etc. in a small area. The chickens love it. I'd like to let more grow, and after reading this thread, I think I'll try harder. Some of the posts that I read make "scratch" sound like junk. I'm beginning to think that "crumbles" may be the junk. And scratch, with other nutrients from natural products may be a better route. If only I had more time. . . . .I'll know doubt continue to feed both and boost it with other goodies.
Another good source of protein would be organic puppy food. I bought high dollar dog food (no kidding, called solid gold) that my dogs wouldn't eat and I've been feeding it to my tropical fish. My dogs do like our catfish food. . .need to read label and see if it's made with soy or meat, or if it's just listed as "protein". The difference in the price of catfish food may well be the protein source.
Resolution: thanks again for a great topic!
