The Old Folks Home

[ozexpat]

DE is another myth perpetuated by bycers trying to be "organic". It's too dangerous to my health to consider using it on my chickens.

Beetel nut is the best organic wormer.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I feed my birds with hanging feeders in a covered area with a dark sand base. The amount of feed that hits the ground e is minimal.

I use mash as I make it myself. If it hits the ground it stands out.

I would be surprised if it's 5%.

My bulk feeders are inside the buildings with shavings on the floor. Even if I utilize catch trays, which I usually do, there's still a lot of waste.
The hanging dry feeders are outdoors over soil, again lots of waste.
As I always say, "your results may vary". Management situations are all different.

In reference to your earlier reply about feed use reduction. Even with FF, I almost always keep it available all day so I'm not restricting feed.

DE is another myth perpetuated by bycers trying to be "organic". It's too dangerous to my health to consider using it on my chickens.

Beetel nut is the best organic wormer.

X2

I can't really imagine how it got started. An old timer around here had a thought that if DE was fed, it may have an impact on fly larvae in the feces. There would be no other benefit.

I've heard of people putting DE in the water. What's the point? Doesn't it just settle to the bottom?

There's lots of more organic things that can work as a wormer. Black Walnut, Wormwood, Garlic, Cucurbit seeds, Mugwort, Fennel, Hyssop, Thyme and others. The beauty of non chemical wormers is that there's no egg withdrawal.
I use an organic wormer as a preventative about once a year.
http://www.fiascofarm.com/herbs/mollysherbals.php/categories/herbal-wormer
If the chickens had worms, I'd use a chemical wormer. I've only had to worm one chicken in my life.

 

[Alaskan]

I switched to a trashcan feeder for my big flock, instead of a standard hanging feeder..... IMMENSE impovement. I think zero waste.

Also, the feed can now be left outside which is a giant plus. I like forcing the chickens to spend time outside.

 

[ronott1]

My bulk feeders are inside the buildings with shavings on the floor. Even if I utilize catch trays, which I usually do, there's still a lot of waste.
The hanging dry feeders are outdoors over soil, again lots of waste.
As I always say, "your results may vary". Management situations are all different.

In reference to your earlier reply about feed use reduction. Even with FF, I almost always keep it available all day so I'm not restricting feed.
X2

I can't really imagine how it got started. An old timer around here had a thought that if DE was fed, it may have an impact on fly larvae in the feces. There would be no other benefit.

I've heard of people putting DE in the water. What's the point? Doesn't it just settle to the bottom?

There's lots of more organic things that can work as a wormer. Black Walnut, Wormwood, Garlic, Cucurbit seeds, Mugwort, Fennel, Hyssop, Thyme and others. The beauty of non chemical wormers is that there's no egg withdrawal.
I use an organic wormer as a preventative about once a year.
http://www.fiascofarm.com/herbs/mollysherbals.php/categories/herbal-wormer
If the chickens had worms, I'd use a chemical wormer. I've only had to worm one chicken in my life.

This is great information!

DE is a good source of calcium--It is easily digestible so it can help with shell weakness. Like Oz said, you need to be careful when using it because it can harm your lungs.

 

[ozexpat]

As I always say, "your results may vary". Management situations are all different.

In reference to your earlier reply about feed use reduction. Even with FF, I almost always keep it available all day so I'm not restricting feed.
X2

I am not doubting your experience. I am glad to talk to someone sensible. A lot of "alternative feed" people tend to be fanatics.

It took me a while to get it through to my staff that there are no fat chickens - only skinny or healthy.

thanks

 

[Alaskan]

I don't see what oyster shell wouldn't act like grit?

It sure is hard.

 

[hennible]

Well then perhaps I won't get any wormer for my birds, there's no actual evidence that they have worms that I have found, instead I'll just buy them a bunch of garlic...
What do you guys use for coccidiosis? The vet assistant said something about Sulfa or sulfur drugs...

 

[hennible]

I don't see what oyster shell wouldn't act like grit?

It sure is hard.

I was wondering that too...
Although as grit it would be the greatest choice for roosters

 

[ronott1]

I was wondering that too...
Although as grit it would be the greatest choice for roosters

Oyster shell dissolves. Grit stays in the gizzard for a while and grinds up grains there. Oyster shell would be too "soft"

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I am not doubting your experience. I am glad to talk to someone sensible. A lot of "alternative feed" people tend to be fanatics.

It took me a while to get it through to my staff that there are no fat chickens - only skinny or healthy.

thanks

I thinks so too. I did have a fat chicken once. I opened her up when she died suddenly. There was fat everywhere. You couldn't even see the gizzard as it had a layer of fat all around. I hadn't been keeping good tabs on the amount of scratch. I immediately put that flock on a diet.

I don't see what oyster shell wouldn't act like grit?

It sure is hard.

Oyster shell is soluble, granite grit is insoluble.
Oyster shell becomes mush when wet, especially in the acidic environment of a chickens' digestive tract. By the time it gets to the gizzard it's soft enough to pass right through where it then does its job, being picked up by the calcium absorption sites in the small intestine.

Granite or flint grit of appropriate size gets lodged in the small intestine where it stays for days or longer assisting in grinding foods until the acidic environment eventually even breaks that down and it needs to be replaced.

A chicken can basically hyperlink dietary calcium to the shell gland utilizing it faster than almost any other animal. Large particle oyster shell is superior to the small particlulates in feed because it spends more time in the upper digestive tract and them enters the small intestine at night when the egg is in the shell gland.

Here's a good read on egg formulation, oyster shell, etc..

http://www.nutrecocanada.com/docs/s...-formation-and-eggshell-quality-in-layers.pdf