What is the healthiest food to feed baby chicks?

[nelz626]

I'd worry about ordering feed to be shipped, because then I have no control over the mill date.
Mary

ohhhhhh ok.

 

[Folly's place]

Just don't do it. That seed mix won't do, especially for chicks. Where's the vitamin and mineral mix?
Mary

 

[sevenfatcows]

Scratch and peck brand is good. But you have to feed it either wet or fermented. H & H is also good.

Scratch and Peck can be milled down in a good blender, like a Vita Mix, and fed dry. That's what I used to do with it, but finally decided it was not worth all the trouble and extra expense. Now I use a local brand that's milled in a nearby city-I feel like the chicks do just as well, and the price is less than half. As an earlier poster mentioned, I think freshness is the key factor. Wetting feed or fermenting it is really helpful since it reduces a good deal of waste and stops the mash from just blowing away.

 

[X_and_Z]

Scratch and peck brand is good. But you have to feed it either wet or fermented. H & H is also good.

I have been using Scratch and Peck (https://www.scratchandpeck.com) and feeding it both dry and wet/fermented to both adults (grower with oyster and eggshell separate) and chicks (starter). I get it shipped and the free shipping takes ~2 days to get from WA to CA. If you can find it locally it will be much cheaper - I was quoted ~1/2 the price per pound (in 40#bags only sold to wholesale customers) for the same feed from a local feed store, but they cannot seem to keep it in stock so I am still mail ordering

I know several people that like Modesto Milling and have had great success with it:
http://www.modestomilling.com/poultry.html
The starter has 22% protein which for many people is a big plus.

 

[nelz626]

Just don't do it. That seed mix won't do, especially for chicks. Where's the vitamin and mineral mix?
Mary

learn something new every day i tell ya haha.
i get my vitamins & minerals from plants. i thought they would too. they're also gonna get fruit & veggies from me and they will be free in the yard once they get their feathers to eat nature. i didn't think i'd have to supplement.

 

[nelz626]

I have been using Scratch and Peck (https://www.scratchandpeck.com) and feeding it both dry and wet/fermented to both adults (grower with oyster and eggshell separate) and chicks (starter). I get it shipped and the free shipping takes ~2 days to get from WA to CA. If you can find it locally it will be much cheaper - I was quoted ~1/2 the price per pound (in 40#bags only sold to wholesale customers) for the same feed from a local feed store, but they cannot seem to keep it in stock so I am still mail ordering

I know several people that like Modesto Milling and have had great success with it:
http://www.modestomilling.com/poultry.html
The starter has 22% protein which for many people is a big plus.

thanks a bunch. gonna check these links out

 

[Leigti]

I can now get scratch and pack or Modesto milling or big sky brands from azure standard. It is much much cheaper than ordering from Amazon. So if that is available in your area look into it.

 

[junebuggena]

Do not mess around with a DIY feed when it comes to growing and developing birds. Chicks double in size each week. It takes a balanced diet to fuel that growth rate. Sure they could survive off a DIY feed mix, but surviving is not the same as thriving. Inadequate nutrition can have serious, life-long consequences, ranging from feather picking to bone deformities.

 

[Mysimplewyominglife]

question where are you from? I ask because every place is different with organic/ non gmo organic chicken feed. I will add from my own experiance it's easier to find organic non gmo feed for layers then chicks where you are it might be different. I would not try to make my own blend personally as I would worry about to enough of one thing or another.
This type of feed will cost loads more just want to put it out there. I have bought feed through amazon and the date is normally a few months away as long as it smells good your fine buying it online.

scratch and peck I found on amazon for $40.99 for 25lbs of it.
I know a place that does a organic non gmo feed sprouting feed I saw it on mother earth news but it's just as pricy.

 

[Folly's place]

About the age of feeds; some vitamins degrade pretty fast, and may be deficient after six or eight weeks. That's before fats turn rancid, usually. Using feed past two months old, especially for growing chicks, is a very bad idea.
Mary