Whole Corn Vs Cracked Corn, What do you use?

[speckledhen]

Did you even look at the thread discussion I cited?

People expect some little internal space heater to kick in just because they throw them a handful of corn at roost time. Way back when, I heard that myth repeated over and over again,too, then was made aware of studies that concluded otherwise. A dry environment goes a long way toward making the flock feel warm during a cold night rather than what they eat at roost time. Moisture brings in the chill to a coop and with it, frostbite.

 

[Michael Apple]

That's a given on the subject of environment. Of course a coop should be dry. That's off subject from what you cited. Corn is fed sparingly, but often increased in Fall and Winter due it's carbohydrate and fat value. Plurivocular fat cells produce heat in a chicken. Corn helps with the production of these cells, so to put it simply, corn helps produce heat. I won't argue about that fact.

 

[billrey]

Living in the far northwest of Minnesota, we get pretty darn cold up here. I have geese, guineas, turkeys, chickens and their food of choice is corn. Notice I said THEIR food of choice and I see no sense in feed oats and wheat if its not eaten. The corn helps the birds stay warm on roost, corn is cheaper than other feed right now and its all consumed. As for supplements, I have buckets of crushed oyster shell and grit about the coop and yard, so they take what they need when the need. The corn feeding starts and ends with the snow. Once they are not able to scratch up dinner or eat grass the feeding starts and the opposite in spring. I do hope its an early spring this year. They rest of the year all the birds are free ranged. Naturally, they all pick through the hay given to the goats. Water, the liquid kind, is our biggest issue.

 

[TERRY4]

I only give cracked corn in the cold weather to keep them warm. It is a heat food, so shouldn't really be given in warm weather. We're in Ohio and it'll be like -7 windchill tonight. They got their cracked corn, oats, and of course their regular layer crumbles. They're sleeping soundly and happy. We close them in at night and it's draft free, and sturdy.

 

[teqrcq]

I use crack corn and mix feed with it

 

[Lacrystol]

I tried whole corn no one will eat it in my flock. I mix crack corn with grains with rolled oats and black sunflower seeds.

 

[danronian]

I give my hens a handful of whole "dent corn" every day. They love it. The smaller birds didn't like it at first, but now they all devour it.

 

[tielsandchooks]

I have always let my chickens decide for themselves what is good for them, and my flock will just NOT eat or eat very little chicken mash or crumbles or pellets. Their main diet is finch seed (a very small millet mix) and a scratch consisting of hulled sunflower, cracked corn and milo. In cold weather they will eat a lot of whole corn, but will ignore it in warm weather. Their fondness for finch seed has always amazed me. Of course I also feed them sprouted wheat and pasta mixed with cracked oats and wheat mixed with yogurt. They are free range during the summer. Some of my hens are eleven years old and very healthy.

 

[Orp]

I really learned a lot by reading this thread. Thanks to all who replied. For the record I mix whole field corn into scratch grains and throw out about a cup a day as a treat. They also have access to layer feed. Guineas and chickens share winter quarters. All birds eat the corn, but I think the Guineas especially prefer it.

I only feed the corn through the winter, obtaining it from a local elevator in fall. The most important thing I learned from this thread is that to feed it in fall/early winter to encourage the animals to put on fat to help them through the cold days of winter. By late winter/spring I probably should be easing off the corn.

Thanks again to all for your good advice.

 

[jvls1942]

I only read about the first page of this thread..

It depends on the time of year , In the real cold winter, I feed a mixture of oats and corn, ground up quite fine..

in the summer, they get whole corn, if they get any at all..

corn is not condusive for egg layers, so they do not get much at all, if any.. and if I should feel like giving any corn in any form to the egg layers,, it comes to them at the end of the day,, after they have had their egg layer rations.. otherwise they fill up on the corn and the egg laying is adversely affected ..

If you feel that they need treats, give them meal worms, or green vegetables.. toss out a head of cabbage and watch the fun ..