The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[delisha]

I use gamefish chow to increase meat protein; here in the states, it's 32% protein derived from porcine.

Beautiful SPR in your profile picture..

Please share about *porcine*.

Mushrooms?

 

[aoxa]

I use gamefish chow to increase meat protein; here in the states, it's 32% protein derived from porcine.

I just emailed my local co-op store to check if they can special order the fish meal. I sure hope they can..

 

[maggiemo]

Please share about *porcine*.

Mushrooms?

porcine = pig

 

[Jewelwing]

It is my favorite book that I recommend all the time.

What are the soup pots made from? You can't use aluminum, but if they are stainless steel you can use them.

They're probably aluminum, now that I think about it. Why can't you use aluminum?

 

[Tinman9]

We free range our chickens and keep full feeders. I love seeing the girls out pecking in the grass. I have to say a lot of free rangers I meet don't feed their chickens. Maybe some scratch here and there no chicken feed though. I feel it's important to remind free rangers that it takes 1 full acre per chicken to get them enough nutrients to be healthy. This means 12 hens need 12 acres to forage for all their dietary needs. Please don't starve your chickens. Perfectly acceptable to let them forage just make sure you make up the difference in some kind of feed.

 

[aoxa]

We free range our chickens and keep full feeders. I love seeing the girls out pecking in the grass. I have to say a lot of free rangers I meet don't feed their chickens. Maybe some scratch here and there no chicken feed though. I feel it's important to remind free rangers that it takes 1 full acre per chicken to get them enough nutrients to be healthy. This means 12 hens need 12 acres to forage for all their dietary needs. Please don't starve your chickens. Perfectly acceptable to let them forage just make sure you make up the difference in some kind of feed.

Where did you come up with this? I'd like to see some documentation to back that theory up.

My chickens are not starving. I do not offer full feeders all day. They get two full crops each a day and that's it.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I would think so. But to be honest I have always bought chick starter for new chicks. I have always been afraid to do it. i hope you try it and let us know..I would love to stop buying bagged feed all together.

I've never used chick starter at all. Not even with my very first birds. I use the same basic recipe for all birds. Calcium on the side for the olders; extra meat to raise protein levels for the babies. Usually just ground beef/liver/venison...whatever I have...each one fed raw. Sometime use whey from cheese or yogurt making, etc., but avoid that too much with the littles due to the calcium.






And...yes, in winter I do sprout! It has many of the same benefits as fermenting...
Almost ALL of the BOSS I give is sprouted year-round.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Kassaundra has a wonderful video showing her burlap bag method of sprouting.

I also wrote an article on sprouting for a SMALL flock that's really easy. I can repost it here if anyone is interested.

 

[Leahs Mom]

RedRidge - was good to see you again...was missing you!

 

[delisha]

We free range our chickens and keep full feeders. I love seeing the girls out pecking in the grass. I have to say a lot of free rangers I meet don't feed their chickens. Maybe some scratch here and there no chicken feed though. I feel it's important to remind free rangers that it takes 1 full acre per chicken to get them enough nutrients to be healthy. This means 12 hens need 12 acres to forage for all their dietary needs. Please don't starve your chickens. Perfectly acceptable to let them forage just make sure you make up the difference in some kind of feed.

huh?

I need further information about this..
Most small farmers never had more than 10 acres. Half of it was plants for family food and other for animals like a milking cow or two and a few pigs. If starving were ever a problem I doubt you would have ever seen the front lawn dotted with pecking chickens. Chickens rarely forage more than 2 acres even if you had 1000 acres..they simply do not need too. I have acerage here and my birds have never gone more than an acre or two. Your information is interesting, yet to my experienced old self seem a bit off.

I do not feed my birds feed..they free range this time of year. I have yet in 35 years had one skinny chicken or one drop over dead of starvation...more than likely the opposite. Too darn fat.