Spending $80 a month on feed, help me cut those costs!!

[dpears28]

You could also start a garden for yourself and grow squash or pumpkins for your chickies, I'm told they can be froze over the winter, so if you grow enough

I have squash and pumpkin started in my house already and am hoping to have a good crop this year so I can save them! I did put out an ad on criagslist last year after Halloween and got to go pick up peoples leftover pumpkins. There were quite a few that weren't even carved yet so that was awesome!

 

[dpears28]

Have you tried fermenting you feed? I've only just started this, but from reading up on it it's supposed to decrease the food consumed by your flock as well as allow them to absorb more nutrients from the feed.

I know someone else mentioned that 4 legged creatures could be taknig their unfair share of the feed as well, perhaps securing the feed at night could help?

I've never heard of fermenting feed. Is there any chance you could point me in the direction of finding out more about that?

I know that a few of you have mentioned maybe a rat is stealing the food but there is no evidence anywhere in my coop, garage (which the coop is attached to) or the yard that shows we have a rodent problem. All the feed is secured as well. I think I may have just created piggies. It doesn't help that our turkey consumes a lot of feed alone.

 

[dpears28]

I cut down on feed costs 3 ways:
1. Build a PVC feeder if you don't already have one. I could not believe how much feed they wasted!
2. The leftovers from dinner now go to the girlies instead of the dog. Fruit, veggies, meat, whatever. I have found very few things they won't eat.
3. I made a compost bin right outside their coop with about 6 cinder blocks. I started with half dirt and half leaf/dead grass/old garden plants and added about 20 worms we found in the yard. Cover with plastic and voila- you have a worm farm. It takes a few weeks to get up and going but once those worms start making babies you have yourself free food.

I have yet to find a feeder I think will work but I think i'm just being to picky. I did do some reading on the site last night and saw 5 gallon buckets with holes for chickens to get at the feed and did think those were doable. We already give any and all leftovers to our girls and we have the chicken run as a compost but I'm thinking that your compost idea would be a nice addition.

 

[farnorth]

I have squash and pumpkin started in my house already and am hoping to have a good crop this year so I can save them! I did put out an ad on criagslist last year after Halloween and got to go pick up peoples leftover pumpkins. There were quite a few that weren't even carved yet so that was awesome!

I did that a couple years ago too.....got left over pumpkins after Halloween.....they love the pumpkin and the seeds. Last year I planted my own pumpkin patch and had plenty of pumpkin for my hens.... I also saved buckets of windfall apples last fall and let them freeze in the garage and gave them a couple a day over winter, the apples were shriveled and frozen but they would spend the day pecking at them.

I think I am gonna try a worm bed out by the coop this year.

 

[19disbre]

you can sprout almost any plant and feed it peas, corn, sunflower...