Staying alive and tasty eggs...

[wermnmnmnm]

Hi, I am Margie and I am receiving my first chicks May 13,14 or 15th. Easter Egger, Australorp, Dominique, and an unknown egg layer. I am learning so much on this site and am hoping to keep my chicks alive and have tasty eggs in the end. So far, I have learned how to winterize my coupe and run, how to help stave off illnesses through raw apple cider and chorid, if necessary' and about a million other little helpful diddies. What I would love to know is what shall I feed my precious girls to make the tastiest eggs? I am a backyarder and not a farmer and want my 6 and 9 year old to know their food comes from actual farms and animals, not the grocery store... so away we go... tasty egg makers eat what exactly? Oh yeah... and I was staying away from medicated crumbles to stay away from the unnecessary medication, but should I be going that route as a preventative?

 

[chfite]

I don't used medicated feed. I treat problems that occur. Most talk of preventive medication is for things that have not happened and may not happen at all. Cleanliness is important to prevent problems.

I feed Dumor from Tractor Supply and my chickens seem to do well. They forage everyday, most of the day, so they have augmentation to the diet that I cannot control. My vegetable garden has few bug problems.

The eggs are quite good.

Chris

 

[wermnmnmnm]

But Chris, does it have any vegetables left in it? Hahahaha

I can't find Dumore in my area... I will keep looking... you are not the first one to tell us this. Thanks for responding.

 

[JessicaThistle]

I am feeding mine Nutrena Naturewise Chick Starter/Grower. It isn't organic or anything but my girls are thriving! I bought one big bag of medicated for their first bag. I exposed them to outside at 3 weeks. After the bag of medicated ran out, I switched to non-medicated. They have also gotten scrambled eggs, mashed steamed veggies, oatmeal, mashed potatoes, cornbread, popcorn and tonight some leftover tamale pie. They get to explore the garden and compost pile daily where they find all kinds of goodies. They aren't laying yet, but I hope for some really yummy gifts from my girls.

 

[wermnmnmnm]

Thanks Jessica, I have never composted, but perhaps we should start.. the chickens would love that, but I have to be careful about odors as the community pool is behind me. I am trying to be a good neighbor because I am in the burbs. work at a garden store and have easy access to Manna Pro, Nature's Best and Purina products. I ave read a lot about Purina, Dumor, but not so much on the feed that is easy for me to get... I don't have Dumor nearby and I am not sure if I have have yours nearby... I will look... thanks again for weighing in. My fingers are crossed and my hopes are high

 

[JessicaThistle]

Thanks Jessica, I have never composted, but perhaps we should start.. the chickens would love that, but I have to be careful about odors as the community pool is behind me. I am trying to be a good neighbor because I am in the burbs. work at a garden store and have easy access to Manna Pro, Nature's Best and Purina products. I ave read a lot about Purina, Dumor, but not so much on the feed that is easy for me to get... I don't have Dumor nearby and I am not sure if I have have yours nearby... I will look... thanks again for weighing in. My fingers are crossed and my hopes are high

I don't have a very aggressive compost pile so it never smells. It's just a pile of weeds and some leftover veggies from the garden that went there last year. I also have a guinea pig, so I dumped his box there two or three times last year. Mostly it's a place to throw the garden weeds. I haven't ever put kitchen stuff in it. Maybe that would smell? I don't know.

Anyway, my girls must be finding yummies in there because as soon as I let them out they run straight for it to scratch and peck like crazy.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Thanks Jessica, I have never composted, but perhaps we should start.. the chickens would love that, but I have to be careful about odors as the community pool is behind me. I am trying to be a good neighbor because I am in the burbs. work at a garden store and have easy access to Manna Pro, Nature's Best and Purina products. I ave read a lot about Purina, Dumor, but not so much on the feed that is easy for me to get... I don't have Dumor nearby and I am not sure if I have have yours nearby... I will look... thanks again for weighing in. My fingers are crossed and my hopes are high

A good, working compost really doesn't have a strong or bad smell to it. We have a large compost pile that is comprised mostly of stall cleanings, horse manure, green materiel and - now - chicken droppings from the poop boards. Our "Mt. Volpoopius" is fairly large at this point, having been building for six years, and there is zero odor. Our neighbor loves it because I have given him free reign to take as much as he would like for his garden - in exchange I get fresh fruits and veggies all season long w/out having to do any garden work.

 

[wermnmnmnm]

You won't believe this, but our county regulations state that we cannot keep chicken manure on our property for more than a week... but the other compost I can do.

 

[JessicaThistle]

You won't believe this, but our county regulations state that we cannot keep chicken manure on our property for more than a week... but the other compost I can do.

Just curious: How do they police that? Do they go door to door and check yards? How do they know if it's sat there longer than a week?

I think some laws are pretty stupid because there is no way to enforce them.

 

[wermnmnmnm]

They just spot check whenever they want... I don't know if it ever een happens, but that is what they say... I am in the heart of suburbia against the community pool. I will be careful to be a good neighbor because it is the nice thing to do... that is just who I am... no one wants to go to the pool and smell chicken droppings while they are there all day.