What feed do you give your silkies?

[Ahernaa8045]

Hi everyone,

I have a couple silkie hens and a silkie rooster. I want to give them the best feed for their bodies. Some are 1 years old and the others 2 years old. The hens are laying but I have a rooster in there with them so I want him to have the proper nutrition as well. I’ve heard purina is not the best, so I’m staying away from that, but what would be a good feed?

What level of protein? On one side I hear silkies need high protein and on the other side I hear “high protein = kidney issues.” This is hard since I am 2 years into chicken keeping and just want the best for them!

 

[Yardmom]

I am not familiar with the claims relating protein to kidney failure.

The continue feeding of the calcium in layer food can build up and cause problems in nonlayers.
The solution is to feed an all flock feed with oyster shells on the side. Different companies call the product by different names. Purina calls it flock raiser and Kalmbach calls it flock maker.

 

[Ahernaa8045]

I am not familiar with the claims relating protein to kidney failure.

The continue feeding of the calcium in layer food can build up and cause problems in nonlayers.
The solution is to feed an all flock feed with oyster shells on the side. Different companies call the product by different names. Purina calls it flock raiser and Kalmbach calls it flock maker.

I’ve heard a lot about kalmbach, would you recommend that one?

 

[thecatumbrella]

I’ve heard a lot about kalmbach, would you recommend that one?

That's a good one, and I like that it's a crumble for smaller silkies.

 

[Ahernaa8045]

That's a good one, and I like that it's a crumble for smaller silkies.

Would it be fine for a rooster as well? I just don’t want to feed my rooster the wrong thing

 

[thecatumbrella]

Absolutely. Just like @Yardmom said, so long as it's not a layer feed with calcium, everyone can have some. Put oyster shell in a dish on the side for layers and they'll take what they need.

 

[Ahernaa8045]

Absolutely. Just like @Yardmom said, so long as it's not a layer feed with calcium, everyone can have some. Put oyster shell in a dish on the side for layers and they'll take what they need.

Great! thanks so much. I appreciate you both on helping me with this!

 

[Bough]

Hi everyone,

I have a couple silkie hens and a silkie rooster. I want to give them the best feed for their bodies. Some are 1 years old and the others 2 years old. The hens are laying but I have a rooster in there with them so I want him to have the proper nutrition as well. I’ve heard purina is not the best, so I’m staying away from that, but what would be a good feed?

What level of protein? On one side I hear silkies need high protein and on the other side I hear “high protein = kidney issues.” This is hard since I am 2 years into chicken keeping and just want the best for them!

I feed mine Kalmbach. I order from chewy I give them henhouse reserve and they have a flock maker 20 percent that I mix even ratio. Right now I have chicks so I have them on chick reserve and flock maker. I use all Kalmbach. Grit and scratch.

 

[banty007]

Hi everyone,

I have a couple silkie hens and a silkie rooster. I want to give them the best feed for their bodies. Some are 1 years old and the others 2 years old. The hens are laying but I have a rooster in there with them so I want him to have the proper nutrition as well. I’ve heard purina is not the best, so I’m staying away from that, but what would be a good feed?

What level of protein? On one side I hear silkies need high protein and on the other side I hear “high protein = kidney issues.” This is hard since I am 2 years into chicken keeping and just want the best for them!

This is from "featherbabyfarm.com"*.... I wish I'd known this years ago:​

➳ As a breed, Silkies tend to be prone to vitamin deficiency​

"Vitamin deficiency causes wry neck. Some of the signs are: stargazing, walking backwards, low-hanging head, and loss of balance. I suggest a preventative approach, as dealing with this condition can be hard on the heart.
Silkies are prone to deficiencies in vitamins B1 (thiamine), B2, B6, E, and D. Selenium is necessary for the absorption of vitamin E, and thiamine is necessary for the absorption of all other vitamins, so supplements for silkies should contain all of these. Red Cell and Poultry Cell are the best supplements for silkies and providing 2-3 times a week in their water is is sufficient.
Red Cell- 1 tablespoon per gallon of water
Poultry Cell- 2 tablespoons per gallon of water"
My comments: 1) *Featherbaby Farm has good reviews from Chamber of Commerce.com & their Facebook page (unlike 2 other Calif co's I've read about here that that sell Silkies). Runnings, it's like TSC, sells Red Cell; Amazon sells Poultry Cell. I'd prefer PC as it doesn't add Calcium like RC (which is more of a horse product).
2) I feed new incubator or shipped chicks chopped boiled egg (especially the yolk) first, and then give them starter (plus any leftover egg).

 

[Debbie292d]

I’ve heard a lot about kalmbach, would you recommend that one?

This is what all of our silkies have been on for about a year. I raise and breed show-quality silkies, and they look great!

I do supplement it for the adults with a 1/4 dose of Rooster Booster Granules. That's just enough to make their feed a smidge better for them, as many free-range, but the chicks all get it out of the bag. The pens with hens get oyster shell in a dish attached to the wall so they don't scratch in it. The hens eat it, the roosters don't.

What @Yardmom said about too much calcium for non-layers, I know is true for chicks too. I had a batch hen raised last year. Only one out of six made it unscathed. They had gotten into their mom's oyster shell, and for how long, I don't know. They were just 3 weeks old and lost use of their legs. A chicken's leg nerves run through the kidneys. No amount of B-complex and physical therapy 3X per day for over two weeks helped one bit. The damage was done.