quick questions about my pigs/chickens

[ahappybrood]

They are not pigs but they eat like pigs. I amshocked at how big they have gotten so quickly . Is it possible to over feed them? They seriously eat nonstop. If I put it in front of them they will eat it. They are 7 weeks old and they are on the layer feed plus I give them tons of treats which they love. They come running out to me when I go otu there because they anticipate the snacks. I give them all types of greens (Kale,collards,dandelion etc) corn ont he cob,tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries,watermelon...the occasional taste of rotini but rarely. I only give them a little because they go crazy for it. Is it possible to have overweight chickens? Is there a limit to how much I should feed them?? Any advice ?

 

[notapandabear13]

its possible to over TREAT them. treats shouldnt be a major part of their diet. But if they get minimal, they cant really get overfed. they really do need to have food in front of them 24/7 but only the chicken food. Just limit your treats to once in a while and they should be fine.

 

[terri9630]

They are 7 weeks old and they are on the layer feed plus I give them tons of treats which they love.

At 7wks they should be on a starter feed, not layer.

 

[ahappybrood]

actually they are 8 weeks old. I miscounted and when my husband went to the feed store they said they were ready for the layer. I originally read that they should only need the starter food until we ran out of it...which was about 7 1/2 weeks old they told us 8 weeks so I figured it was close enough.

 

[kathyinmo]

They are too young for Layer feed. Do not feed layer until 20 weeks, or when you get your first egg. I just read a post (somewhere on here) where someone lost some of their chickens due to the layer feed. It is too much calcium for them. Layer feed has more calcium than starter/grower feed.