Topic of the Week - "Off-grid" Feeding - Homemade feeds, etc.

[AllenK RGV]

Yup have three.. put one in front also thought outside kitchen never used it gonna haul it around back new big chicken coop

I bet those would be great connected directly to the major doors in the house(front/back) to preserve the heat.

 

[pennyJo1960]

One is my main coop on my profile, one is our barn one is my greenhouse the one in the front is in danger from a widow maker limb and never used

 

[AllenK RGV]

One is my main coop on my profile, one is our barn View attachment 1258314 one is my greenhouse the one in the front is in danger from a widow maker limb and never used

I tried to be cheap and get a "local artist" to harvest my rotting don't trust it at all Mesquite tree. We never made it past the texting phase, guess I'm going to be paying my guy to remove it.

 

[pennyJo1960]

I tried to be cheap and get a "local artist" to harvest my rotting don't trust it at all Mesquite tree. We never made it past the texting phase, guess I'm going to be paying my guy to remove it.

okay going back out did not step out of the screen room to take the photos boy where they awful,
love the shade it gives but when that comes down
re shot the photo's from outside this time

 

[lazy gardener]

Comfrey is an easy-to-grow, supplemental food source for chickens. There are non-invasive cultivars, and once a plant is established it is very easy to sub-divide it in order to propagate additional plants. There are times of the year when my chickens will eat it to the ground, probably for its high protein and vitamin content. It's interesting that my hatchery birds won't touch it, but the chickens that are from breeders seem to love it (e.g., dominiques). Perhaps they are closer in behavior to their wild kin.

Some other food sources I've seen mentioned on other threads include: Siberian Pea Shrub and Mangle Beets. I don't have any experience with these yet.

Free ranging can provide a significant amount of free food during spring, summer and fall, especially if there is a variety of vegetation available (e.g., clover, grasses, dandelion, etc.). Dropped fruit (e.g., from apple trees, pear trees, etc) is also a good supplement.

Free ranging can also provide animal food sources for chickens, including insects, earthworms, mice, snakes, etc. If cover-boards (e.g., tin, old pieces of plywood) are placed on the ground, they will attract small mammals (mice, voles), which will in turn attract snakes. All of these can be wild food sources for chickens if they are quick enough to catch them when the cover-boards are lifted. I would not recommend placing cover boards near houses or coops. When a mouse nest is discovered, the baby mice provide a good protein source for chickens.

A deer carcass is a great protein source during the hunting season.

If I were trying to sustain a small flock during hard times and limited food availability, I would choose a breed that is easy to sex at hatch or within the first couple of weeks (e.g., dominique, barred plymouth rock) so male chicks could be culled very early.

I have planted Siberian Pea, Bocking #14 Comfrey, American seedling plum, apricot, Hazelbert, High bush and low bush cranberry, Juneberry, Black and Raspberry, Elderberry, apple, and pear. Fresh road kill would be an other option, as would the many chipmunks and squirrels that populate my yard.

Agreed, autosexing breeds would be very welcome in hard economic times. Love Dominique. Also, don't forget that any dark roo x barred or cuckoo patterned hen yields a black sex linked chick. there are also many options for creating your own brand of red sex link chicks. Doms are wonderful foragers, make great broodies. And they are friendly.

Ok, after reading many more responses I have more questions.Will chickens eat yarrow? I have an abundance of this that grows wild in the yard/field. Free ranging is not an option, but I can certainly throw it in their run.

Voles. We have lots of voles. Usually the cat (which I specifically brought home to take care of voles and prairie dogs) pulls them out of the wood pile. Will the chickens eat it if it's already dead? If the cat kills it and I throw it to the chickens is this a good treat? Do the chickens have to hunt and catch the live voles themselves? Or is it better for the cat than the chickens? Should I let the cat eat the things it catches? (I usually take the rodents away and dispose of them, but perhaps I am wasting a valuable resource doing this)

I've never known even a cat to eat a vole. I can't speak from experience, but believe they do not taste good. I doubt that a self respecting chicken would eat a vole. Yarrow? I don't think I'd put it in the run for a chook treat. Though it has healing properties. I plan on using some to make a salve this summer.

"Henry Field’s Seed Sense for February 1926. In it the author writes, “If you don’t grow mangel beets for anything else, grow them for your chickens. They furnish a very important food element for your laying hens. Your hens will loaf on the job during the winter if they do not have green food of some kind like sprouted oats, cabbage, or beets. Mangels are easy to grow and make enormous yields. "

Gotta get me some mangels!

Raw, undercooked and raw beans are toxic, cooked are fine. Sprouting them also eliminates the poison. Sprouting is probably better for the birds, either way beans are good for us bird or human.

Thanks for posting this. Beans that are related to kidney beans fall into this category, while mung and lentils are safe.

 

[lazy gardener]

For human and chooks too:

 

[wyoDreamer]

One thing I am working on is building a cabinet-type solar dehydrator. One that has a collector made of popcans painted black attached to a solid wood cabinet that contains a number of stainless steel racks. I want to dehydrate extra greens for the chickens, something that I can add to the run in winter to give them something above and beyond their layer. If I leave the plants mostly whole and dehydrate it, I think I could put it in a hayrack type feeder and let them pick what they wanted out of it. Basically make chickens hay. This works well in summer with fresh weeds when I have them locked in the run all day, so I am hoping it will be of some benefit during the winter months.
I am also growing wheat, oats and buckwheat to store and throw in to the run whole to give them something to do.

 

[song of joy]

Doms are wonderful foragers, make great broodies. And they are friendly.

Indeed. That's why I like them and have them in my flock!

This brings up some fundamental questions that should be asked, and it goes beyond feeding the chickens. When living off-grid or during hard times, these are some questions that can help to shape and define the flock to benefit both the keeper and the chickens. I've included my expectations, which have shaped my flock over the years. Other people may have different expectations.

1. What do you want the chickens to do for themselves?

Get along with each other. Obtain a variety of foods (plants, insects) via free-ranging. Keep themselves warm in the winter without supplemental heat. Keep themselves comfortable in the summer by selecting appropriate cover. Generally maintain good vigor and health (a function of genetics and environment). Roost and nest in appropriate places. Be alert for predators and evade predators.

2. What do you want the chickens to do for you?

Provide eggs over as much of the year as possible without supplemental light. Provide meat for the table occasionally. Save on feed costs by free-ranging. Provide fertile eggs for hatching. Incubate eggs. Brood chicks. Care for chicks and teach them to forage. Integrate chicks into the flock. Use nest boxes for egg-laying. Roost in the coop at night. Provide fertilizer for gardening. Provide enjoyment as a hobby. Clean the coop (guess that's expecting too much).

3. What will you do for the chickens?

Provide healthy feed for all life stages. Provide housing conditions that support good health (dry bedding, good ventilation, adequate roost space and floor space, clean waterers and feeders, etc.). Provide adequate nest boxes. Provide safe areas for hens to incubate and brood chicks. Provide medications (as needed) for internal and external parasites. Provide free-range conditions that support good foraging opportunities and include thick cover to hide from predators. Maintain flock and homestead harmony by culling flock members that are incompatible with that harmony (e.g., aggressive roosters, bully hens). Maintain flock density at a level that is compatible with housing and feed availability. Cull flock members that do not show good vigor and health. Provide a coop that is predator-proof to ensure safe roosting at night.

 

[lazy gardener]

SOJ, Excellent, well thought out post. I have to say, this is the best post I've read all week, with many nuggets of wisdom here. This needs to be placed in the articles section.

Going through your post, I looked for any little nuggets that I could add to it, and I found nothing. Absolutely nothing, nada, zilch, rien!!!

 

[song of joy]

SOJ, Excellent, well thought out post. I have to say, this is the best post I've read all week, with many nuggets of wisdom here. This needs to be placed in the articles section.

Going through your post, I looked for any little nuggets that I could add to it, and I found nothing. Absolutely nothing, nada, zilch, rien!!!

Thank you for your kind words @lazy gardener. I owe a great deal to folks like you who have shared their wisdom with me on BYC.