when to start layer pellets?

[mcalderonv]

Hello, I have a few chickens as well, they were gifted to me in Nov. 2015. I have the same question "when to start feeding layer pellets". However, I cant understand why we need to buy these things, back in the day before all this stuff I do believe chickens layed eggs and had baby chicks, I am not giving my chicks any pellets, when the first egg appears, I might wing it and see for a while, then add the pellets and see what happens.

right now I give my chicks boiled potatoes and skins, boiled rice, squash, bananas, they love bananas. I also grow fodder for them at home and sprout seeds, just regular old sunflower seeds. I also feed them grit only because I heard that it aids in digestion but not much, I give it to them as "scratch" something for them to dig around for. I grow meal worms and give them maggots that I also grow/raise myself for them. (its gross but if you put a piece of chicken fat/skin in a Tupperware and keep it in a dark place in three days you should be able to lift that piece of skin and find maggots, the chicks love them).

Not really sure how to raise chicks its my first time so, Don't do what I do but trust that your chickens will tell you what they like and what they don't.

I have one that squaks every morning until I come out to pet her and feed her strawberries, I've gone so far as to dehydrate the strawberries just to have them even in the winter when she yells, or she won't stop yelling. After I spend 10 minutes with her, she eats and then goes up in the little house and sleeps, then the rest of her day is okay, no yelling, no fuss, no muss. I also walk around the yard and pick sprouts, weeds and pepper and tomato leaves they love the tomato leaves.

Again, do what you feel is right take everyone's experience and calculate what works for you. I don't have much money so I do it this way there is no chicken feed store here in New York (Brooklyn) and shipping this stuff is expensive.

Good LUCK, Huggs everyone!!!


Megan

 

[crazybantams]

Wonder if anyone can help/ give some advice. We have 2 chickens who are happily laying and 3 that are not there yet (2 are quite a bit younger) they were seperated until recently now mixed them in, they are all getting on nicely but now they are all sharing food. There is both layers and growers and oyster shell avalible at all time but of course the older chickens laying are just eating growers with the little ones. What's the best thing to do, leave both? All on layers?

 

[galvinj]

Wonder if anyone can help/ give some advice. We have 2 chickens who are happily laying and 3 that are not there yet (2 are quite a bit younger) they were seperated until recently now mixed them in, they are all getting on nicely but now they are all sharing food. There is both layers and growers and oyster shell avalible at all time but of course the older chickens laying are just eating growers with the little ones. What's the best thing to do, leave both? All on layers?

Put them on grower with oyster shell offered on the side in a container. I have two laying and two not there yet. I get nice hard shelled eggs by offering oyster shell on the side. They know when their body needs it. When they all start laying you can switch to layer or just stick with grower and crushed oyster shell offered on the side.

 

[crazybantams]

Thanks! Have done this now!

 

[Papagena]

We give ours non-medicated chick starter with oyster shell on the side. We have three different ages of chickens from babies up to laying pullets and we also have a rooster. I worry about giving the rooster all the extra calcium (layer feed) and I don't want to keep up with three different feeds either. The older chickens also free range all day so they barely eat any feed

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Put them on grower with oyster shell offered on the side in a container. I have two laying and two not there yet. I get nice hard shelled eggs by offering oyster shell on the side. They know when their body needs it. When they all start laying you can switch to layer or just stick with grower and crushed oyster shell offered on the side.

X 2 - I feed grower ration from the first to last day of any bird's time in my flock -- oyster shell available free choice meets the calcium needs of actively laying birds and the grower ration meets the nutritional needs of all birds regardless of age, gender or production status, in fact, the higher protein content when compared to most of the commercial layer feeds is preferable to me in the way that it supports my birds.