Our silkies didn't do so well with pellets, even the small ones, so I stick with crumbles.
We often have baby chicks here, teenagers, and adults, including many hens and roosters, as well as a few ducks. For several years, they've all been on
Kalmbach's Flock Maker crumbles. That does come in an
organic version if you wish. Even if I wanted to go organic, we can't, as we're surrounded by farmers' fields.
This is 20% protein, but lower calcium, so I have dishes of oyster shell where the adult chickens are.
Treats are
Kalmbach's Henhouse Reserve, available in an organic version. They get scrambled eggs about twice a month. Otherwise, I keep treats form anything else to a rare occasion, since they need to get their nutrients from their feed. They love kale, which is highly nutritious, so we grow it for them in the summer.
I mix a small amount of
Rooster Booster into the feed monthly for a boost, but avoid using it daily with chicks, as it causes diarrhea.
Since silkies are more prone to vitamin deficiencies, we take proactive steps to prevent them. We'll still have an occasional problem, so other vitamin supplements we have on hand for individual cases are Poultry Cell and Nutri-Drench, as well as a few individual vitamin/mineral treatments.
