Supplementing animal protein with dog food?

[barred2rock]

I've been reading that a lot of people prefer to offer an animal based protein feed to their chickens rather than a vegetable only feed. All the feeds I've ever found have been vegetable only. So, would it be a good idea to add a little of my dogs grain free dog food to the chickens fermented feed? Or maybe crushed on the side?

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I just give them the leftovers from the fridge, which could include ground beef, pork, ham, turkey, chicken, etc in addition to any vegetables and such. The only thing I really make sure to limit is bread, and no potatoes even though cooked ones are supposed to be okay.

ETA It's a lot cheaper than giving them dog food! lol It costs about $550 a year to feed my two dogs so I really don't want to be giving that to the chickens and making my dog food costs go up.

 

[barred2rock]

I just give them the leftovers from the fridge, which could include ground beef, pork, ham, turkey, chicken, etc in addition to any vegetables and such. The only thing I really make sure to limit is bread, and no potatoes even though cooked ones are supposed to be okay.

ETA It's a lot cheaper than giving them dog food! lol It costs about $550 a year to feed my two dogs so I really don't want to be giving that to the chickens and making my dog food costs go up.

We use a lot of salt, soy sauce and other sauces in our food. Besides we really like our meat so there aren't often left overs. lol

Our grain free dog food is relatively cheap and we only have one 12 lb dog to feed. I wouldn't feed the chickens such a significant amount to raise our dog food bill. More likely to lower the chicken feed bill.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Gotcha. My chicken feed is about 26 cents a pound v my dog food at about a dollar a pound (the cheapest grain free I've found) and I've got two large dogs so no savings for me lol. My husband is not big on leftovers hence the source of the meat when I clean out the fridge, plus I personally am trying to eat less meat (though it doesn't help much if it just goes to waste - sigh). I have started cooking smaller batches of food the past couple of weeks and if he's still hungry, well he can make a pb&j and that's all I have to say about that! (off topic I know but sometimes you need to vent)

You just prompted me to check the Southern States website. It specifically says no animal proteins/fat in the meat maker pellets I feed everyone, but not the sporting bird starter I use in their fermented feed, so now I'm curious. I'll have to check the tag when I get home.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I've been reading that a lot of people prefer to offer an animal based protein feed to their chickens rather than a vegetable only feed. All the feeds I've ever found have been vegetable only. So, would it be a good idea to add a little of my dogs grain free dog food to the chickens fermented feed? Or maybe crushed on the side?

Vegetable based protein is an incomplete protein source for chickens. Besides that fermented chicken feed is a dangerous thing. It is much too easy to introduce dangerous and toxic moulds by feeding fermented feed. One big danger is the disease Aspergillus, and another very deadly poultry disease is pearlitic botulism. Botulism is often mistaken for Marek's Disease. However you can feed a soaked or wet feed made by mixing the amount of chicken feed you are going to feed that day with as much boiling water as that amount of chicken feed can absorb in 4 hours. Let it cool before feeding and then just dump the soaked feed into a homemade wooden feed trough or else on top of a scrap piece of tin. Oh, be sure to step back so your fowl don't trample you while getting at the goodes. Animal based dog, cat, and pig chow are all three good sources of protein for chickens and they can all three be soaked but never fermented.

Do a little search on BYC. In the last weeks someone here reported an older hen who made a miraculous recovery while waiting to die in the garage were the cat food was kept and that hen made her recovery by eating nothing but cat food.

 

[barred2rock]

I tried giving them some, I don't think they've ignored anything as much as they did the dog food. That puts the end to that debate. lol

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Yeah, I tried giving mine cat food after my cat died and they didn't really care for it even though they gobble down everything else.

One big danger is the disease Aspergillus, and another very deadly poultry disease is pearlitic botulism

Aspergillus doesn't just appear out of nowhere and can contaminate dry or soaked food just as easily... It's route of entry is through the lungs so technically you would be more likely to inhale it from a dry rather than a wet food. The disease is caused Aspergillosis.

The other disease you mention is paralytic botulism. Following the proper steps for food handling and fermentation make the risk very low. You'll find conflicting information on fermenting feeds, but the general consensus is that it is not to be done in an airtight container and it should be stirred daily, thus reintroducing air into the mixture. Botulism is a risk in anaerobic processes and canning.

ETA Since I feed my chickens around 630 am, I'm not going to get up at quarter after 2 to boil water to soak my feed lol. In winter I do a 3 day rotation and in summer a 2 day rotation and that has worked grand.

 

[Chickassan]

Cat food is where it's at! Chickens love meow mix.I'm not in any means saying its good for them just they will eat it like nobody's business. I'm guessing it's because I don't want them eating it or the shapes and colors float their boat. Kitten chow is even more tempting, got to be the size there as it is just brown. My girls will not touch dog food which is a shame because neither will the cat so I'm stuck with a bag.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Cat food is where it's at! Chickens love meow mix.I'm not in any means saying its good for them just they will eat it like nobody's business. I'm guessing it's because I don't want them eating it or the shapes and colors float their boat. Kitten chow is even more tempting, got to be the size there as it is just brown. My girls will not touch dog food which is a shame because neither will the cat so I'm stuck with a bag.

You shouldn't feed dog food to cats anyway.

I'm not a fan of meow mix or kitten chow. Maybe my cat food is too fancy for them and that's why they don't want it lol

 

[Chickassan]

I know but it was one of those grab it and go shopping trips and I grabbed dog food. Fancy cat food? My cat has strict rules if it doesn't stink like behind and cost less than three bucks she isn't interested.

You shouldn't feed dog food to cats anyway.

I'm not a fan of meow mix or kitten chow. Maybe my cat food is too fancy for them and that's why they don't want it lol