Wisconsin "Cheeseheads"

Hello, I'm in West Central / Northern Wisconsin. We have had a lot of snow here. I just got some chicks. 5 Salmon Favorelle and 5 hybrid layers. Does anyone know what feed to use to sustain the 'flock'? I hear some feeds are not up to snuff. I wonder if I should just buy some grains and mix them at a feed mill.
Crumbles chick feed when small. Once chickens get older mine get layer feed. (usually) Sometimes they get all flock feed.
I intergrate chicks with the bigger birds at around 4 weeks. So the young birds eat what the bigger chickens are eating.

If you have a feed mill by there you can see if they have chicken feed. I use agrimaster made by Cargill sold at farm fleet stores.
I grow some corn at neighbors hand pick, shell and grind. I mix the corn with cracked roasted soy beans. I take soy corn mixture and mix with chicken feed. Just saves a few bucks is all and my chickens free range.

Trying to buy grains and have them mixed is going to be more expensive than buying from mill. The feedmill will have a nutritionist which will formulate the feed, or should have one anyway. Many of the premade feeds are corn and soy based. There are feeds which do not contain soy.

If you are not going to freerange your chickens, once vegetation starts growing give them some greens, grass...etc. If you have extra vegetables chickens like vegetables
and fruit.
 
Crumbles chick feed when small. Once chickens get older mine get layer feed. (usually) Sometimes they get all flock feed.
I intergrate chicks with the bigger birds at around 4 weeks. So the young birds eat what the bigger chickens are eating.

If you have a feed mill by there you can see if they have chicken feed. I use agrimaster made by Cargill sold at farm fleet stores.
I grow some corn at neighbors hand pick, shell and grind. I mix the corn with cracked roasted soy beans. I take soy corn mixture and mix with chicken feed. Just saves a few bucks is all and my chickens free range.

Trying to buy grains and have them mixed is going to be more expensive than buying from mill. The feedmill will have a nutritionist which will formulate the feed, or should have one anyway. Many of the premade feeds are corn and soy based. There are feeds which do not contain soy.

If you are not going to freerange your chickens, once vegetation starts growing give them some greens, grass...etc. If you have extra vegetables chickens like vegetables
and fruit.
yes, I just call the feed mill and tell them to get the
corn/oats ready , then I go pick it up.
 
@HappyHippyChick Ibuy 18%protein Nutrena chick starter. I dont do medicated feed. Then as soon as they start laying i switch them to layer feed which is 16%protein. Then i add in corn and oats to the feed. I dont have a good feedmill around me. Mine is all for cows and they dont do whole corn only cracked. Good luck with the new chicks!
 
Thanks @Ilovemychicks08 , @jvls1942 , @TOR , Now I have a lot of options to feed my chicks when they grow up. I do have a feed mill to go to about 30 miles away. :thumbsup
IMO I would wait for the chickens to get bigger before giving them 50/50 mix (sorry JV) oats is very high in fiber, chickens do not digest high fiber food the best, not that they can not do it.
Also corn being about 8 percent protein, oats 11 to 14 percent protein. I would have some cracked roasted soy beans or soy bean meal added. They should have 16 to 20 percent protein.
Couple or 3 years ago I did alot of research, was going to make my own feed. After I started learning I said heck with it.
As example off top my head black sunflower seed is high in fat and should be no more than 10 percent daily diet.
Oats I believe in laying hens was no more than 40 or 60 percent in ration before negative results, cant remember.
Each grain has its own attributes amount proteins, amino acids, etc etc.
It is mixing the different grains, ( and kelp and legumes, etc etc) attributes and achieve a daily diet.

This is why I mix chicken feed in with my corn and soy beans, winter time they do not get to free range as much. I want them to have all the vitamins they need. If the chickens are stuck in the barn for long time I have poultry cell, just vitamins to put in water once a week since I dilute their chicken feed.

The information I read and alot of it at the time was university ag studies. Some of the studies I am sure were back in the 50, 60s, 70s.At least the print sure looked like it.

So after I started researching making feed I see why a good feed mill would have a nutritionist.

I stopped using medicated chick feed also.

sorry long winded post
 

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