Best whole grain feed

[Perris]

hounistly I’m just so lost

Just remember that until about 100 years ago, millions of people all over the world have raised chickens very successfully without any commercial feed. Chickens are omnivores, their instincts will tell them what they need to eat, and how much they need eat, from what they can find at any given time and place. The more variety you can offer them, the easier it will be for them - and they can eat for free if you just let them forage.

 

[Ducking_dallas]

Just remember that until about 100 years ago, millions of people all over the world have raised chickens very successfully without any commercial feed. Chickens are omnivores, their instincts will tell them what they need to eat, and how much they need eat, from what they can find at any given time and place. The more variety you can offer them, the easier it will be for them - and they can eat for free if you just let them forage.

thank you I really appreciate it

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Indoor birds? I don't use it myself, but I will also recommend the Kalmbach whole grain options, and echo the importance of serving as a wet mash or fermented feed, to ensure the fines (w/ the vitamin premix, some enzymes to improve digestibility/bioavailability, and other ingredients of nutritional benefit) are eaten with the grains.

There is no combination of common whole grains, which will meet a chicken's dietary needs - particularly certain amino acids making up the total crude protein - without either requiring that they eat far more feed than they typically would consume, grossly exceed their daily dietary energy needs, or both.

Something(s) need to be added to compensate for where grains are usually deficient. Adding seeds can help w/ some of the aminos, but while most seeds are higher protein than grains, they are still (typically) sub 16% crude protein as fed, while their contribution to dietary energy intake exceeds that of most grains. Non Phytate phosphorus (that is, phosphorus not in the form overwhelmingly found in plants) is needed to, as chickens almost can't use phytate phosphorus (unless you add an enzyme to make it more bioavailable).

The protein content of most grasses is typically well under that of a typical grain - which makes sense, as cereal grains are the seed of specialized grasses - and seeds are typically the most nutrient dense portion of a plant.

 

[Perris]

In short, chickens need an omnivore's diet, not a dried vegan one.

 

[Perris]

also

rhetorical device, or just a misreading?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

rhetorical device, or just a misreading?

"also" agreeing with someone else in the thread who recommended the Kalmbach.

Apologies for the lack of clarity. Some of my posts yesterday did real abuse to the English language.

(and I hope that someoen else was recommending Kalbach earlier in htis thread when I posted that. I had so many windows open last night - brain was on scatter shot) Again, apologies.

 

[FrostRanger]

"also" agreeing with someone else in the thread who recommended the Kalmbach.

Apologies for the lack of clarity. Some of my posts yesterday did real abuse to the English language.

(and I hope that someoen else was recommending Kalbach earlier in htis thread when I posted that. I had so many windows open last night - brain was on scatter shot) Again, apologies.

You didn't goof, I recommended kalmbach

 

[MichaelDJ]

Variety is the key.
I feed organic whole seeds using Garden Betty's chicken calculator to which I add a little bit of organic layer pellets, alfalfa pellets, Granulated seaweed, nutritional yeast and occasionally some protein powder.
They also get some black fly larvae (daily).
Couple of times a week they get grass clippings and home grown kale.