What age to start BOSS?

[JJSS89]

Oh my, yes.

general nutritional components of black oil sunflower seed are:

• 28 percent fat
• 25 percent fiber
• 15 percent protein
• Calcium
• B vitamins
• Iron
• Vitamin E
• Potassium

And if you sprout them, it's really good for young birds and older as well. Sprouting is as simple as putting them in a tray of dirt with a little covering and watering every day for a few days and putting the tray in the pen after a few days.

 

[LindaB220]

And if you sprout them, it's really good for young birds and older as well. Sprouting is as simple as putting them in a tray of dirt with a little covering and watering every day for a few days and putting the tray in the pen after a few days.

That's a fabulous idea. I've been so busy with other things that I'm forgetting how easy this is. Thanks.

 

[familyfarm1]

WOW! where do you buy it?

 

[familyfarm1]

and do you shell them first?

 

[JJSS89]

No, I let them do whatever they want with it. I just give it raw...usually still on the flower.

My wife has an annual obsession with growing sunflowers all over our acreage and the chickens reap the benefit

 

[LindaB220]

WOW! where do you buy it?

I bought it at a feed store for $13 for 25 #.. They love them. I am going to try and sprout some in a dishpan with holes in the bottom. A couple inches dirt. Put soaked BOSS in (maybe a couple of cups) and sprinkle a little dirt over them. Water well and in 4 or 5 days they will be coming up fine. Then just put the whole thing in the coop.

 

[QueenBubbles]

The people at my feed store told me that since I let my chicks run around my yard, they are perfectly capable of finding the right size grit for their gizzards and I don't need to buy grit. So far, they are doing fine!

 

[JJSS89]

The people at my feed store told me that since I let my chicks run around my yard, they are perfectly capable of finding the right size grit for their gizzards and I don't need to buy grit. So far, they are doing fine!

Yes. That is the good old, "Keep it Simple..." approach. If your chicks are eating grass and are not sick it's because they have also discovered grit.

 

[familyfarm1]

Thank You!

 

[hugz4all4]

Im considering sprouting it, Ive realized that my young flock really isn't eating as much as I thought and the chipmunks, squirrels, and birds are getting awfully fat around my run..:/
They do enjoy the occasional handful of scratch and their everyday pile of grass..