The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Leahs Mom]

Welcome! And just chime in as you're catching up...you don't have to wait to get all the way through to hang out!

 

[stonykill]

the whole previous discussion always gets me. Here is why. People tend to try to humanize chicken behavior. They try to put human emotion and expect chickens to act like a human would in a social environment. Can't happen. They are chickens, not human.

I think once natural chicken keepers get past that they are then well on their way to being able to raise their chickens naturally.

my .02 or .0005 in this economy

 

[Kassaundra]

I believe I read somewhere not to feed chickens bread. Anyone have a reason? We began feeding bread almost everyday last year when I learned they love it. We aren't a bread addicted family so most goes bad at my house. It makes me happy the chickens eat it. But am I hurting them?

It isn't very high in nutrition, but they do love it. When we get day old bread from my SIL breadman (she owns a restaurant) for free I feed it to them, but I justify it by soaking it my fermented grain water first so I can say to myself they are getting the good juice from the ferment.

 

[Kassaundra]

For those of you with any size flock that free range any size property:

Could you tell us:

-What kind of feed you give.

Purina bagged mixed with various additives, whole grains, herbs, protein, ect.


1. Number in your flock.

Sixty

2. About how much area do they have to range?

1/3 acre

3. How long do they get to range each day?

Eight hours

4. What is your experience with predation?

Past years, dogs, birds of prey. This year no predation. Much better fences.

5. Is the property primarily open pasture, wooded, or mix?

No pasture. Lawn, gardens, orchard, wooded shrubbery.

6. Compare the amount of feed you have to give them during a typical June or July vs. the amount of feed given in a typical January.

This is the first June and July I've been feeding my current mixes with the largest flock I've run in decades. Nothing is typical yet. I'd roughly estimate I feed two or three gallons of fermented mash a day. Fifty plus birds in my flock are five months old and younger. As they grow, the amount is going up. I predict they will be getting closer to four gallons a day soon.

Feed?
16-24% chicken feed at feed store (whichever it happens to be), feeder insects I raise, fermented grains, during non growing season sprouted grains, kitchen and garden waste or over production

1.
24 - 50 depending on season (more through the summer growing up to go to freezer camp in the fall, less through the winter)

2.
1/2 acre

3.
Sun up to sun down

4.
My own dog (no longer better fence now) hawk on small ones (no more now all small ones even w/ broody moms go in covered run) small ones neighborhood cat (again fixed by the covered run)

5.
No woods, yard / garden / fruit trees always adding new plantings of forage for them

6.
Can't really tell since the flock is larger in the summer

 

[TexasLisa]

Oh, dear lord...i dont generally post to bookmark, but I *just* finished reading the Fermenting Feed thread...take pity on me! Looking forward to slogging through this one when the black flies are too bad to work outside over the next...however long.

I finally gave up on 'catching up'. Every time I signed in, there were another 10-20 pages written. These guys CAN write!

What do you call 'black flies'? In Houston, we have 'buffalo flies'--little tiny black flies that leave a BIG whelp on you. I have learned on one of these forums to use Banana Boat 50 sunscreen lotion. Boy does it work. There are times--not many--when I will have to use bug spray also. All last year I used this and didn't have a problem. My husband, being a stubborn male, didn't use it and got bit!

Lisa

 

[Eggcessive]

Bulldogma, so sorry that you lost your sweet rooster. Hopefully, the state lab can determine the cause of his liver failure. I'm glad we have the experienced people on BYC that can give us details of their experience with their birds, as well as the internet to do some research ourselves since vets don't know much about poultry unless they own them. My daughter is a vet in another state, and she said they didn't learn much at all about chickens. I know way more than she, and I've only had chickens a few years. Glad you are getting another rooster soon.

 

[nova022]

Bread is loaded with sugar.

It leaves them feeling full while providing no nutritional benefit to them.

Yeah they love it. I bet they love bugs better.

I may feed the ends of bread loaves to the chickens, but it is extremely rare. I do not eat a lot of bread. The rest of my house is Gluten free.

We are gluten free too, but do make cornbread once in a while with cornmeal, eggs, oil and water. Will that hurt them? They love it.

 

[520farmer]

I finally gave up on 'catching up'. Every time I signed in, there were another 10-20 pages written. These guys CAN write!

I can finish reading this thread and go to look at other threads that Im subscribed to and there will already be new posts!

Does anybody use Madagascar hissing cockroaches as animal protein?

 

[aoxa]

I finally gave up on 'catching up'. Every time I signed in, there were another 10-20 pages written. These guys CAN write!

What do you call 'black flies'? In Houston, we have 'buffalo flies'--little tiny black flies that leave a BIG whelp on you. I have learned on one of these forums to use Banana Boat 50 sunscreen lotion. Boy does it work. There are times--not many--when I will have to use bug spray also. All last year I used this and didn't have a problem. My husband, being a stubborn male, didn't use it and got bit!

Lisa

Only that lotion??

I tried OFF yesterday after my stupid natural stuff would not work, and even the OFF didn't work!

We are gluten free too, but do make cornbread once in a while with cornmeal, eggs, oil and water. Will that hurt them? They love it.

That sounds much better than the bread most people feed their birds.

No it won't hurt them

 

[Quailsong]

We are gluten free too, but do make cornbread once in a while with cornmeal, eggs, oil and water. Will that hurt them? They love it.

This house is somewhat GF. I can't tolerate gluten in any form, but my partner can. Though this year he's taken to enjoying our GF flax/poppyseed bread.

aoxa & nova, I read something about quinoa being tested recently to have gluten in it & can actually sicken people with celiac. I don't know if you guys use quinoa at all but for now I've personally decided to skip it.