The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[mlowen]

Do most of you feed a commercial pellet or do you make some kind of grain mix on your own? I'm fearful that I would not get the nutrients in a self-made mix correct...

I feed and ferment Blue Seal's organic layer pellets with barley, wheat, and oats. I usually add to my bucket once a week. (I started with 5 chickens and am down to three, so it doesn't go that fast.) I keep it on the drier side, like Lacy Blues. I've had the bucket going for a year and a half. I have used buttermilk and plain full fat yogurt for "boosts" every now and then. I keep it inside, so I feed it year round.

 

[atmaclean]

I feed and ferment Blue Seal's organic layer pellets with barley, wheat, and oats. I usually add to my bucket once a week. (I started with 5 chickens and am down to three, so it doesn't go that fast.) I keep it on the drier side, like Lacy Blues. I've had the bucket going for a year and a half. I have used buttermilk and plain full fat yogurt for "boosts" every now and then. I keep it inside, so I feed it year round.

We feed a Blue Seal feed to our horses, so we can get the Blue Seal. From what I remember, however, the organic feed was on the pricey side - especially feeding my flock of 40 hens and 50 or so guineas. We go through a lot of feed If money wasn't a consideration, or if we had a much smaller number to feed, the organic and non-GMO would be my top choice!! Maybe the price will come down soon....I can hope

 

[COChix]

When I first started the fermenting, I used the ACV with mother to jump start the process (I'm not terribly patient is some scenarios).  I also use yogurt from time to time.    When I first started, I used a couple of "glugs" from the bottle after shaking it up to distribute the mother.  I think back then I probably added acv with every addition of feed/water but not so much.  Just a small bit poured into the water before adding that to the bucket.  I use yogurt the same way, stir it up with a whisk and then pour it into  a small amount of water and mix it again so there are no big blobs of it, then add water to the desired level to then pour that into your ferment bucket and stir well.

Ditto on using ACV for my ferment process. I don't measure the water, I just put in my dry feed 3-4 quarts of dry feed) then top the 5 gallon with water.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Oh, I forgot to mention... every once in a while the ferment will smell "off" to me and then I will add a big glug of the ACV just to bring it back into balance.

You'll know if it gets "off." The smell is very very different.

 

[Momo chicks]

oohhh Momo, you have  a REAL mill there.  what did  you decide about feed?  did you find anything you could use?  thank you for posting the pics.  When I travel, if there is a mill anywhere near I'm always trying to stop.  Love seeing the different regional products,  and talking to the people that work there.  

Had a wonderful time talking to them about the different feed. I got a all natural 28% protein starter/grower and 25 lbs of BOSS . I haven't started the FF yet because I have been trying to find how much UPACV to add to 1 gallon of water.

I purchased two 2 gallon glass jars from walmart to start the FF in. They were a steal at 11 dollars a piece. I also got a bag of chick grit for them to put out for the to use freely.Later when they start to lay I will give oyster shell.

Someone on this thread had mentioned sprouting BOSS for their chicks, does anyone remember that a d where to get the information? You could just pm me the link if you know it.

 

[HeritageGoose13]

This thread looks like it has so much information! Guess I will be sifting through this for the next few days... or weeks... or months.

I'm interested in fermented feeds, or sprouted/homemade feed recipes. I know they're supposed to be good for the birds and some say it helps keep costs down... do you find that to be true? I'm always looking for ways to save money without cutting corners on my flock's health.

Another question: it seems like almost all the feed recipes I've seen for chickens are mostly grains or legumes or other seeds. Is this necessary for them or can they have a diet focused more around veggies with occasional grains? A grain-based diet would be cheaper to purchase, but a veggie-based one would be easier to grow... I know ducks can have more than half their diet cooked potatoes without any affect on egg-laying (according to Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks) so could a chicken live like this? I'm very curious.

 

[flyladyrocks]

Had a wonderful time talking to them about the different feed. I got a all natural 28% protein starter/grower and 25 lbs of BOSS . I haven't started the FF yet because I have been trying to find how much UPACV to add to 1 gallon of water.

I purchased two 2 gallon glass jars from walmart to start the FF in. They were a steal at 11 dollars a piece. I also got a bag of chick grit for them to put out for the to use freely.Later when they start to lay I will give oyster shell.

Someone on this thread had mentioned sprouting BOSS for their chicks, does anyone remember that a d where to get the information? You could just pm me the link if you know it.

 

[COChix]

This thread looks like it has so much information! Guess I will be sifting through this for the next few days... or weeks... or months.

I'm interested in fermented feeds, or sprouted/homemade feed recipes. I know they're supposed to be good for the birds and some say it helps keep costs down... do you find that to be true? I'm always looking for ways to save money without cutting corners on my flock's health.

Another question: it seems like almost all the feed recipes I've seen for chickens are mostly grains or legumes or other seeds. Is this necessary for them or can they have a diet focused more around veggies with occasional grains? A grain-based diet would be cheaper to purchase, but a veggie-based one would be easier to grow... I know ducks can have more than half their diet cooked potatoes without any affect on egg-laying (according to Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks) so could a chicken live like this? I'm very curious.

Please go back a few pages and read all of our responses regarding our thoughts on FF. sorry, but it will only take a few.

 

[COChix]

Oh, I forgot to mention... every once in a while the ferment will smell "off" to me and then I will add a big glug of the ACV just to bring it back into balance.

You'll know if it gets "off."  The smell is very very different.

Yes that has happened to me as well. Seems like nothing a few capfuls of ACV doesn't cure, like you said.

 

[Rainey]

This thread looks like it has so much information! Guess I will be sifting through this for the next few days... or weeks... or months.

I'm interested in fermented feeds, or sprouted/homemade feed recipes. I know they're supposed to be good for the birds and some say it helps keep costs down... do you find that to be true? I'm always looking for ways to save money without cutting corners on my flock's health.

Another question: it seems like almost all the feed recipes I've seen for chickens are mostly grains or legumes or other seeds. Is this necessary for them or can they have a diet focused more around veggies with occasional grains? A grain-based diet would be cheaper to purchase, but a veggie-based one would be easier to grow... I know ducks can have more than half their diet cooked potatoes without any affect on egg-laying (according to Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks) so could a chicken live like this? I'm very curious.

I have chicks that are now a month old that never had chick starter. I haven't fermented, but have sprouted or soaked in whey the wheat and oats I gave them. They also have had potatoes (ours were starting to sprout in the root cellar and need to be finished up), some scrambled eggs the first couple weeks, dried nettle, fresh chopped up early greens. At 2 weeks they were moved out to a movable coop that has one door opening onto a compost area and the other onto a run. Since going out there they have eaten very little of the seed put out for them. I see them scratching and eating in the compost often but the only thing I can see them eat there are worms--whatever else they get is too small for me to observe what they're pecking and swallowing. They continue to grow and seem content--don't come begging every time they see us but always come to check out what we add to the compost pile. This is an experiment for me so don't know yet how it will effect their eventual laying.