Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[clawstar]

Good luck, I hatched a few on my birthday in may, best birthday present ever! what type are you hatching

 

[elizmartin]

So I basically put feed in a tall bucket or glass crock and then fill with enough water to have about 1.5-2" of water above the feed. Then loosely cover it and stir now and then or when I remember.
This blog has pretty straightforward directions.
http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com/p/fermented-feed.html?m=1

I hadn't fermented in a while as my first batch of chicks refused to eat it and made a mess. This batch loves it though! And once they got the hang of it, it wasn't messy.

One of the sites i saw added some apple cider vinegar ( lkind with the mother in it). sounds nourishing. I occasionally use beer mash, after removing the top not so good layer, after a few days the under portion takes on this sweet fermented apple smell….When i use it i place in a large feed dish , then spread a layer of crumbles mixed with Scratch and Peck….the moistness takes care of the S&P powder…..

 

[jbkirk]

So I basically put feed in a tall bucket or glass crock and then fill with enough water to have about 1.5-2" of water above the feed. Then loosely cover it and stir now and then or when I remember.
This blog has pretty straightforward directions.
http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com/p/fermented-feed.html?m=1

I hadn't fermented in a while as my first batch of chicks refused to eat it and made a mess. This batch loves it though! And once they got the hang of it, it wasn't messy.

Thanks for the info. Now I WANT to give it a try. So you put feed into a glass or plastic container add enough water to keep it totally covered and stir every few hours, and when you take out feed just put more in to replace it. correct?

 

[Ashley Stroud]

Thanks for the info. Now I WANT to give it a try. So you put feed into a glass or plastic container add enough water to keep it totally covered and stir every few hours, and when you take out feed just put more in to replace it. correct?

Yep! You can start feeding it after a good soak overnight but the beneficial bugs don't really get going until about day 2 or 3, but the girls will benefit from the soaked feed. At first you'll need to keep checking the water level because the feed really soaks it up. Once set though, you'll start to see gas bubbles when you stir it. if you use a clear container or glass, you will start to see like a white filmy substance in the water part--your bacteria. You want at least 1.5-2" water covering it.

Some people have several buckets going in various stages, but I just use one container and after a week or so, i just clean it out and start over. Hope that helps!

 

[Espresso]

I'm having an egg for lunch.... because I put it in my pocket, got back up into the house, ran my son a bath, tossed my coat over the rail.... and heard a crack. Hahaha. Oops!

 

[clawstar]

haha! my grandpa sat on one before!

 

[Amberjem]

I have worried I would do that a few times I often put the egg in my pocket as I go about stuff outside

 

[clawstar]

Anyone have valley/California quail?

 

[MargaretYakoda]

I have worried I would do that a few times I often put the egg in my pocket as I go about stuff outside

I knit a little bag with six egg sized pockets that I use for gathering. I knit a long handle on it, and put a carabineer on the handle. Then I latch it to my belt loop. Easy breezy no hands needed. So I can do my outside chores with no problem. One hand on my cane, one hand doing the chores, and the eggs all snug and safe until I get inside and put them on the egg skep.

 

[Espresso]

I knit a little bag with six egg sized pockets that I use for gathering. I knit a long handle on it, and put a carabineer on the handle. Then I latch it to my belt loop. Easy breezy no hands needed. So I can do my outside chores with no problem. One hand on my cane, one hand doing the chores, and the eggs all snug and safe until I get inside and put them on the egg skep.

Nice plan. I bought an egg basket... but didn't bring it...