Soy-free sadness

[Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay]

Quote:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=542067

I'm just curious of the "why" too...since I know there are a lot of people who are against soy, but it's just interesting to me if the issues encountered are based on the lack of soy.

That is the ingredient list from a marketing piece or an advertisement. It can not be the Ingredeint List from the tag since the vitamin & trace mineral premix is not broken out into the separate vitamins and mineral and it contains trade names. In addition, the Guaranteed analysis does not contain lysine, methionine, calcium, phosphorus, or salt content which are required by law through the Model Feed Regulations set forth by the AAFCO.

Jim

 

[eggbuster]

Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay :

Quote:
Unfortunately I can not give a basic analysis since I don't have the recipe.

My best guesses are: 1) the feed was mixed incorrectly, something was either not added or added at the wrong amount, orf 2) the nutrient profile used to formulate the rations was different from the actual nutrient content of the ingredient.

As an industry we have a good handle on the nutrient profile of corn, soybean meal, and other major commodities used in livestock feeds (DDGS, Select Menhaden Fishmeal, Steam Rolled Oats, etc). However, when we start using ingredients such as field peas, sesame meal, we don't have the same level of knowledge or confidence in our nutrient profiles. It would be easy for the nutritionist to use a 'standard' nutrient profile for a little used ingredient only to have that profile not fit the ingredient being used.

Jim

Absolutely.

I mix my own feed so can make adjustments on a daily/weekly basis until I get it right. Once I reached peaked performance, I backed off a notch to double check I had it right. I now have a recipe that works for the ingredients I buy here locally. By mixing my own I am able to make changes to allow for what I am observing in my chickens. I have slightly varied recipes from the same ingred. for chickens, pigs, and jersey's. Size of grind can make a huge difference and, feeding wet makes a big difference as well. Chickens actually prefer wet food.​

 

[bigredfeather]

Quote:
The batch I did was slower growing but I had no leg problems, as a matter of fact they where crazy active (I think I told you that). If you would like, I can ask my mill for the recipe again or look on my computer and see if I still have it. My mill runs all there rations thru a Akey nutritionalist, so my guess is it's a balanced ration. I think mine would have gotten to a typical weight if I had let them go a few more weeks. I just ran out of time and patience.

ETA:
Here is the ration I used:
Per 2000 lbs
1062 - Corn
50 - Alfalfa Meal
40 - Calcium
100 Distillers Grain
40 - Fish Meal
8 - Kelp
50 - Poultry 50 Vitamin Base
150 - linseed meal
400 - Canadian Peas (aka yellow peas)

 

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

I know a number of people that do soy free up here. Fish meal is the primary protein source in the ration. If you pull the fish meal from the ration a few days (or a week?) before processing, it takes an incredibly sensitive palette to detect the fishy taste. I think the girl I know that does this and sells to customers said only one complaint out of 20-something customers from last year's batch.

 

[wingsofglory]

Rachel, I've been researching doing my own feed and have been wondering where to get the fish meal locally. Does she order her fish meal from the lower 48, or has she found a source locally, like Kenai or Homer?