So who feeds whole grains as opposed to processed feed?

[Smoky73]

Quote:
oh, I have NO Idea really. I figure by how long it takes me to use up what I buy. Figure I am feeding about 85 birds. The flax seed I buy I bought once, over a year ago in a 50lb bag and just now reaching the bottom, I use little at a time, due to it being so small the bag holds a lot. I buy Barley once a month, Rolled oats once a month, safflower and sunflower(shelled) probably every 2-3 months, flax I have not bought for over a year. Same with the powder to make my mix, have not bought in over a year. Commercial feed, about 3 bags per month, or every three weeks. Al I can honestly say is that the birds do not waste it like they did the commercial all the time. They eat better and are healthier the cost is a minor issue to me if my birds are healthy. Of course, I do spend $40 a month for a 20lb bag of top of the line dog food too.

 

[Organics North]

Thats OK, you have nothing real "fancy" in there. Your base ingredients seem reasonable in price. Heck for me organic oats are only $12.50 for 50lbs. I never looked into barley, but it seems that they use it quite a bit for poultry in Europe.

Here is a link to a site with info on barley as poultry feed: (I am unfamiliar with the grain and need to read up on it.)
http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/ansci/swine/eb73w.htm

ON

 

[AllNaturalChick]

This is my first batch of chickens... so I'm new to this.
I did an incredible amount of research before diving into this wonderful hobby, and I definately agree that whole grain feeding is the way to go.
The medicated chick starter is a chemically formulated processed food that optimizes growth in chickens, but if you are not concerned with breaking records on how fast your chicks grow, there is no need for it. (as long as your chicks are kept in a clean environment, to avoid diseases)
There is NO NEED for unnatural supplements either. Feeding kelp to chickens provides them with all of the minerals they need. It is the only plant on the earth that contains all the essential minerals. I have it hanging in their brooder, free choice. They are always nibbling on it. Plus I think it gives them something to do.
My chicks get a mixture of scratch (cracked corn, whole milo, whole wheat), premuim bird seed ( milo, red wheat, sunflower seeds), safflower seeds, lentils, split peas, flax seed and alfalfa. I used the recipe from greeneracres, along with a ratio chart of what chickens require. (I can't remember the website where I found it, but if you search it shouldnt be too hard to find.)
I started my chicks on the whole grains the day I got them. After a few days, one of my 12 chicks started to get pasty butt. Trying to save him, I started to grind the whole grains in a coffee grinder (worked great!!) so he could digest it better. Unfortunately all the yogurt and butt wiping failed, and he died. ( Ground grains start to loose their nutrients within hours of being ground, so I only did small batches that I would feed my chicks immediately)
ALL OF MY CHICKS ARE THRIVING!!! They were given grit since day one too. It is essential if your doing whole grains!! The chicks will eat really small pieces. My local farm store didnt have chick grit, so I bought the regular grit and sifted out the really small pieces to give to them.
Im started to grind their food less and less, wanting to get them used to the whole grains again.
I would love to know if anyone is doing anything else all natural that I havent thought of!!!

 

[Cindy in PA]

Great discussion here. I can so not find the best feed for my chickens. Finally picked up a bag of Layena Gamebird Breeder yesterday & can see by the date on the bag, that even though the feed store can get it, they don't sell it fast enough to keep it fresh. Also the animal protein that I like is much further down the ingredient list than Flight conditioner. I am thinking of finally going to my no corn pigeon grain ($26/50lbs.), fishmeal & Fertrell Nutribalancer. With the fishmeal & nutri-balancer it will probably be over $30/50lbs., but I can probably add some wheat or oats & bring it down some. I think I will start with my new pullets in spring, as I still have feed right now. My bantams and LF presently eat a lot of whole grain, so the transition for these birds wouldn't be too hard. May add some cultured yeast also. How different is spirulina than kelp? I get confused over all the types of seaweed and algae. There is kelp in the Organic Nutribalnacer, but I don't know how much. Whole seeds would just keep so much better here. I can't get plain peas, but the Purgrain pigeon mix has alot of peas & about 8 other grains. I guess I can try it and see waht happens. This would be corn & say free also which is a plus.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

what if anything has anyone learned about the essential amino acids?
BTW I have decided that I am going to take up mealworm farming at a serious level to add protien to the feed.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

I have a really old poultry science book called "The Dollar Hen" much of it is out dated as it was written before the discovery and breakdown of many vitamins and minerals, however; the author made the very valid point that if you fed a carefully balanced and formulated mix of grains to a half a dozen birds and then sacrificed them in the name of science, uon opening their crops you would find one full of corn and another full of barley and yet another full of wheat - as chickens tend to eat what they like.
I see this every day in my flock and I know others do as well, and this makes a very strong argument for ground and pelleted feeds and is I presume why those feeds do so well for large flocks.
I dont want to feed that way though. I want to return my flock to a more natural state where the birds that eat the healthy balance are the ones that survive best and are kept around for breeding further generations of birds that eat healthy balances . . . I just want to figure out what is the best balance to offer.
Right off the bat I can tell you, in my flock at least, the whole oats are going untouched - yes they were cheap and yes I though they would be super yummy to the chickens but noooooo all three flocks of varied breeds and eating needs have completely turned up their noses/beaks at them.
The fresh ground corn has met with huge approvel as opposed to the commercial scratch. As has the hard red wheat (hard red wheat has 14% protien as opposed to soft white which has 8%).
Where does one find kelp???? or what is an alternative to kelp for those who do not live near the sea?

 

[ams3651]

i feed 15% protein game bird flyer finisher from a local family owned feed mill because of reading that the calcium in layer is not good for my roosters. They get added calcium and I also scatter a few handfuls of cracked corn I get from my dad. Makes the yolks nice and orange. My step father is allergic to eggs but my eggs give him no problems.

 

[Cindy in PA]

Quote:
The difference in flocks is funny. I am presently feeding a 4 scratch grain (corn, oats, barley & wheat) for a treat and my bantams eat everything fast except the corn! I know some people have problems with their chickens eating large peas, and while my bantams would leave many for last, they would be all cleaned up by the end of the day. I figure if I feed all whole grain, I will have to make them empty their feeders of peas before refilling. If I can get oats and wheat (a favorite) cheap enough, I may be able to save some by buying peas from Countryside 6 bags at a time. This mix would not have as much variety, but it might be cheaper and I could throw other things in for scratch.

 

[Smoky73]

Quote:
A lady that buys eggs from me said the store eggs make her sick as well, I think that it is the antibiotics and everything else the commercial places feed their birds that is what makes people sick. She can eat my eggs fine too.

 

[doodledo]

Oh let me tell you! If one of you lived near me, you would toss me to the curb, you would be sick of me asking so many questions!

So I will keep them to a minimum.
How do you store your feed or grain as you purchase it?
Can I mix this new feed with their old until I use up all of their other feed. Would this give them time to adjust from processed to whole grain better?
For those of you at home, how do you grind up the whole grain for them?
TIA