Starter food question... Confused...

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

When I was feeding the non organic starter it had 1.0% calcium.


I switched to the Organic Starter crumbles and the tag on it says 4.0% calcium.


The manufacturer website says the Organic only has 1.3 % calcium.


Now I am confused. Isn't too much calcium bad for the babies? I don't have any chicks right now but for in the future...


And wouldn't that be good to feed to my pullets then, with the extra protein AND calcium? Instead of the layer, which has the same calcium and less protein.

 

[Ridgerunner]

When I was feeding the non organic starter it had 1.0% calcium.
I switched to the Organic Starter crumbles and the tag on it says 4.0% calcium.
The manufacturer website says the Organic only has 1.3 % calcium.
Now I am confused. Isn't too much calcium bad for the babies? I don't have any chicks right now but for in the future...

Yes. The 4% is what you feed layers, not growing chicks. Too much calcium can damage their liver.

And wouldn't that be good to feed to my pullets then, with the extra protein AND calcium? Instead of the layer, which has the same calcium and less protein.

No. Too much protein is not good for laying hens on a consistent basis. Look up fatty liver syndrome. That said, if you have one bag, you should be OK to feed it to you hens. The problem with too much protein is when it is fed over a longer time period. Then the fat builds up. But for short periods extra protein won't hurt them.

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

Well I called the company and they said the miller they got it from for some reason sent them the wrong stuff, but they didn't catch it, so they have contacted them and fixed the problem. All new shipments going out from now on will have the correct amount of calcium.

Unusual, at least I helped them fix it! Good thing I only have one bag.

Problem solved!