They say it is good for egg production, so I was wondering if my rooster could eat it to. Is that all the feed they need for their life, or dd I leave anything out? thanks,
ticks
To take your last question 1st - some chickens are fed a "breeder feed." Breeder formulas have higher vitamin & protein content than what is usually given to layers. Calcium levels are virtually the same in feeds for both layers & breeders. The cooperative extension folks don't usually advise small flock owners to bother with breeder feed because it is hard to find, more expensive, and not much different from layer ration.
I see the other question come up now and then and note that there are different opinions on roosters kept on high-calcium rations.
Calcium content is much higher in layer/breeder feed than in feed for younger birds. And, a too high calcium diet
for chicks is said, by every authoritative source that I've read, to interfere with the growth of young birds and can cause kidney dysfunction. So does it cause kidney dysfunction in roosters who don't need it for egg production?
Here's what a poultry science specialist writing for the Ministry of Agriculture, Ontario has to say: "It is also interesting to realize that most roosters today are fed high-calcium breeder diets, which provide 4-6x their calcium needs, yet kidney dysfunction is quite rare in these birds."
If you have special concern about your rooster, I think you could give him a seperate feeding of something like scratch, which has little calcium and would
dilute the calcium level of his overall diet. How you keep the hens from eating the same feed could be a problem. Certainly, you don't want to have the hens short-changed in
their calcium needs by too much concern for the roo.
Steve
