Wondering about quantity of feed

[ONSTAD1]

I'm almost at the stage in my coop build that I can start to think about getting chicks. Mypetchicken has 25# organic starter for $45/free shipping. Two questions. Is that a decent source/price for organic feed? Is 25# enough to get 4 chicks to the developer feed (50# $71) stage?

Possibly the more important question... how long will a 50# bag of feed last for 4 full grown medium sized hens?

Seems organic feed is about 4-5x typical feed...true?

Thanks,

mo

 

[ONSTAD1]

ok 25 views and no replies... let me pose it differently. Skip all the organics.. How much does a single medium sized hen eat in a month/year?

thanks

Mo

 

[cafarmgirl]

I currently have 7 standard size chickens and I buy a 50lb bag of feed about every couple of months or so. I honestly couldn't tell you how much they consume on any given day, I just keep the feeder filled. How much feed each persons flock consumes will differ per response based on whether or not their chickens are fed kitchen scraps and if they are able to free range or otherwise forage part of the day. Mine consume less commercial feed during spring/summer months when there is more for them to forage in the pasture.

So about all I can say is that a 50lb sack of feed will last four hens a pretty long time, even if that's all they are eating. You'll need a good place to store it so it doesn't go bad or get full of moth's etc.

 

[ONSTAD1]

I currently have 7 standard size chickens and I buy a 50lb bag of feed about every couple of months or so. I honestly couldn't tell you how much they consume on any given day, I just keep the feeder filled. How much feed each persons flock consumes will differ per response based on whether or not their chickens are fed kitchen scraps and if they are able to free range or otherwise forage part of the day. Mine consume less commercial feed during spring/summer months when there is more for them to forage in the pasture.

So about all I can say is that a 50lb sack of feed will last four hens a pretty long time, even if that's all they are eating. You'll need a good place to store it so it doesn't go bad or get full of moth's etc.

Thank you. Exactly what I needed to know... do you use scratch? Guessing a 25# bag would last me 6 months if used as a treat?

I think at this rate of consumption organic feed might be an option... $150 a year in feed seems reasonable.

Mo

 

[Roark]

I've got (6) Rhode Island Reds and two Mallards that are about 14 weeks old and two of the Reds have already started laying a small egg each every other day. The Mallards are big enough that they are full flight and occasionally fly a small circle over the house before kamikaze diving back into their pond. They were all free ranging til a week ago when I incarcerated the hens in the chicken tractor in preparation for some new chicks. We feed Purina SunFresh Start & Grow crumbles and we're going to put the older hens on Layena probably in another week or so. The SunFresh is a marketing ploy, no doubt (they call it "all natural") but our birds have done remarkably well on it. It does not have any animal parts, fats or proteins in it, which was our main concern. Other than that we use a non-medicated feed because our ducks eat it also and the medicated chicken feed would presumably be deadly for them. I would add that I hold most "organic" marketing to be suspect as well since that has turned into such a scam to allow the Cargill's and Monsanto's to get their claws into it.

Anyway... they are currently up to about 2- 1/2 cups of feed a day for the chickens, but they also now get some other things on the side. Their chicken tractor gets moved every other day and they have a small feeder with crushed oyster shell, another small one with starter granite grit, a hanging chunk of Flock Block (i made a little cage for it and band saw the blocks into rectangular logs about the size of the Happy Hen Forage Blocks) . They get a morning snack of about a quarter cup of scratch, and and evening snack of a few dozen live meal worms. There's also a kind of hay trough type feeder hung on the side that gets a chunk of cabbage once or twice a week, or some cut raw grains (wheat heads, thistle, millet, etc) that sprout around all of the wild bird feeders. I also give them the less than perfect strawberries and blueberries that we pick. The yard where they range is all planted in mixed clover and rye grass, and I also started a big patch of fescue that we'll turn them loose on later as it begins to sprout more.

So the simple answer for me is... there's no simple answer. Don't know how many cups are in a 50# bag, but it lasts probably a good 6 weeks for our 6 hens and 3 ducks. The balance of their feed bill is probably greater than the cost of the crumbles alone if you were to buy it all, but we raise the meal worms, the chopped up Flock Blocks are about $1.25 a week, the grit is real cheap and a little oyster shell lasts a long time. Everything else is stuff that we grow anyway (either on purpose of by accident) so it all depends on what else you have available, foraging conditions, etc.

Of course, thanks to the Fed doubling our money supply every year (and thereby halving our buying power) the inflation that we have, that they swear we don't have, is running feed prices up again. The stuff we buy has gone up about $3 in the last few months (but we don't have inflation says the Bernanke creature). I expect there will be another QE3 (printing even more of our money) after the Greeks tell the EU adios, and the ripples run through the stock market that we're all too poor, or too smart, to still get sucked into. Personally, we're looking at raising as much of our own feeds as possible, and so have several ponds where we raise fish, which coupled with the chickens, provide a tremendous permaculture resource. Moday should be a hoot.

 

[ONSTAD1]

TY Roark.

Mo

 

[Auscal]

s. Mypetchicken has 25# organic starter for $45/free shipping. Two questions. Is that a decent source/price for organic feed? I

Possibly the more important question... how long will a 50# bag of feed last for 4 full grown medium sized hens?

Seems organic feed is about 4-5x typical feed...true?

Thanks,

mo

I didn't "do" organic for starter or grower, so I can't comment on price for that stage. I don't really remember how much starter I used, but I do think 25lbshoul ddefinitly get you to grower stage though - you can actually feed starter till laying age, if you wish, so, even of you have more starter then you need, you can just keep feeding it until finished.

I currently buy organic layer pellets from the local feed store and pay $25.95 for 50lb, as their regular layer pellets are $12.95 for 50ln, this makes organic exactly twice the cost of non-organic.

IMHO, mypetchicken - even though it starts "free shipping" may have incorporated some shipping cost in their product price. The prices you quoted seem high to me - though probably on par with other places where you are charged shipping.

I would suggest calling around your local feeds stores, see if they carry organic, or if they don't, if they can special order it for you. Initially my local store didn't carry organic, but were still able to order it for me with their regular supplier order. Now they have quite a few people buying it so are regularly carrying it.

If you don't have any success from that, another alternative is ordering from www,azurestandard.com. This is a company that carries a huge huge or organic "type" products, for people, garden & pets. They don't ship, but do monthly deliveries to varies "drop-points". You can check the website for more info, but, the 2011 catalog I have shows organic Poultry starter, grower & Layer (three separate products) (all soy & corn free) for $28.35 for 50lb.

As for "how long feed will last"- for 4 one year old chickens, my 50lb bag lasts about 8 weeks or so. I just keep feed available at all times.If you use the amount of 4oz per chicken per day (kinda accepted as an average for how much a chicken will eat), that is 1lb a day, so, 50 days (7 weeks ) from a 50lb bag.

Hope that all helps.

 

[ONSTAD1]

I didn't "do" organic for starter or grower, so I can't comment on price for that stage. I don't really remember how much starter I used, but I do think 25lbshoul ddefinitly get you to grower stage though - you can actually feed starter till laying age, if you wish, so, even of you have more starter then you need, you can just keep feeding it until finished.

I currently buy organic layer pellets from the local feed store and pay $25.95 for 50lb, as their regular layer pellets are $12.95 for 50ln, this makes organic exactly twice the cost of non-organic.

IMHO, mypetchicken - even though it starts "free shipping" may have incorporated some shipping cost in their product price. The prices you quoted seem high to me - though probably on par with other places where you are charged shipping.

I would suggest calling around your local feeds stores, see if they carry organic, or if they don't, if they can special order it for you. Initially my local store didn't carry organic, but were still able to order it for me with their regular supplier order. Now they have quite a few people buying it so are regularly carrying it.

If you don't have any success from that, another alternative is ordering from www,azurestandard.com. This is a company that carries a huge huge or organic "type" products, for people, garden & pets. They don't ship, but do monthly deliveries to varies "drop-points". You can check the website for more info, but, the 2011 catalog I have shows organic Poultry starter, grower & Layer (three separate products) (all soy & corn free) for $28.35 for 50lb.

As for "how long feed will last"- for 4 one year old chickens, my 50lb bag lasts about 8 weeks or so. I just keep feed available at all times.If you use the amount of 4oz per chicken per day (kinda accepted as an average for how much a chicken will eat), that is 1lb a day, so, 50 days (7 weeks ) from a 50lb bag.

Hope that all helps.

helps a lot

mo

 

[Red Barn Farms]

I have thirty chickens and feed Pen Pals brand feed. They are still on flock raiser until they start laying. We go through 100 lbs a month.

 

[jimbo1989]

Intresting i currently have 2 dutch bantams and 2 standards(barred rock, and a red mix) .i feed them about 1 cup blue seal layer pellets in the am.there also given scratch around their run at noon.family leftoverfor dinner(vegies, ect).i buy 25 lb bagand it last long plus the chickens are happy and seem healthy.