Chicken nutrition and feed questions! Advice wanted.

[easteregges]

Hello, this will be long. I have some chicken feed and nutrition questions. I have a flock of 9 hens that are 2 years old this month. I am trying to make them as healthy and happy as possible. They have a large shed coop, and a good sized netted pen.
They have 4 waterers available and one has ACV in it.
They are on a 20% protein layer feed from a local feed mill.
They were on Purina's Layena feed when they were younger and it caused some health and laying problems, then we went to Nutrina's Feather Fixer then to the feed they are on now.
They always have a full bowl of pellets available during the day. In a smaller bowl they get a mash in the mornings or crumbles. (The crumbles are the same kind of feed as the pellets)
Is this a good feed and does it meet their diet and nutrient requirments?
20% Egg Layer Pellet & Crumble:
Crude Protein, min 20.00%
Lysine, min 1.00%
Methionine, min 0.40%
Crude Fat, min 3.00%
Crude Fiber, min 6.00%
Calcium, min 3.50%
Calcium, max 4.50%
Phosphorus, min 0.70%
Salt, min 0.20%
Salt, max 0.70%
Ingredients:
Grain products, processed grain by-products, plant protein products, calcium carbonate, monocalcium phosphate, salt, dl-methionine, vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, riboflavin supplement, calcium pantothenate, choline chloride, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vitamin K activity), niacin supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, ferrous carbonate, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, zinc oxide, and sodium selenite.
They get scratch every other day in the morning. It consists of scratch grains (Cracked corn, milo, millet, and oats), black oil sunflower seeds, and black soldier fly larva.
due to some feather plucking habits in a couple of our hens they now also have a flock block which they have access to in the afternoon
They always have fresh water and a clean coop
I have been giving them herbs like organo, parsly and basil plus chili flakes
Do they need them or should I just give them herbs once a week and not every day?
PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF THIS IS MEETING THEIR NUTRITIONAL AND DIETARY REQUIREMENTS!!!
THANK YOU.

 

[Sally PB]

@U_Stormcrow, care to weigh in?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

The gross numbers (Protein, fat, fiber, calcium, phos, listed aminos, etc) are fine.

The long list (below) is part of a premix, which suggests the vitamins are fine.
vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, riboflavin supplement, calcium pantothenate, choline chloride, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vitamin K activity), niacin supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, ferrous carbonate, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, zinc oxide, and sodium selenite

There is no need for the scratch - its low protein, high energy, low vitamin - potential source of dietary imbalance. The flock block is basically scratch plus additional binders.

More space, more "entertainment" should help with the feather plucking.

The herbs are to make you feel good. They are not a reliable doer of anything, except possibly coloring the egg yolks some.

 

[easteregges]

The gross numbers (Protein, fat, fiber, calcium, phos, listed aminos, etc) are fine.

The long list (below) is part of a premix, which suggests the vitamins are fine.
vitamin A supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin E supplement, riboflavin supplement, calcium pantothenate, choline chloride, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vitamin K activity), niacin supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, ferrous carbonate, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, zinc oxide, and sodium selenite

There is no need for the scratch - its low protein, high energy, low vitamin - potential source of dietary imbalance. The flock block is basically scratch plus additional binders.

More space, more "entertainment" should help with the feather plucking.

The herbs are to make you feel good. They are not a reliable doer of anything, except possibly coloring the egg yolks some.

Thank you. I just wanted to be sure they were getting a proper nutrition. Would the herbs be OK once a week?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Thank you. I just wanted to be sure they were getting a proper nutrition. Would the herbs be OK once a week?

They won't hurt, if that's what you are asking. They don't help - except potentially egg yolk color (the pepper flakes, primarily)

 

[easteregges]

They won't hurt, if that's what you are asking. They don't help - except potentially egg yolk color (the pepper flakes, primarily)

Ok. I thought they had health benefits. Thank you for your help.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Ok. I thought they had health benefits. Thank you for your help.

I can walk you thru the research. The theory is sound. The problem is the math. The concentration of the bio-effective chemicals in those plants is so low that to have any significant, measureable, long term health benefit your chickens would have to eat huge quantities - and they won't. And its so variable in those plats as to not be reliably repeatable - a factor of the age of the plant, the time of the season, recent rainfall, soil conditions, and sometimes the variety of plant.

Plenty of people simply repeat it because they've heard it. Some even understand the broad theory - but that's where their knowledge stops. The problem is reliable dosage.

 

[Perris]

Ok. I thought they had health benefits. Thank you for your help.

They do. You may find this useful, especially the section on wild edible plants:
The use of alternative food sources to improve health and guarantee access and food intake
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2021.110709

 

[Ridgerunner]

Thank you. I just wanted to be sure they were getting a proper nutrition. Would the herbs be OK once a week?

That feed contains everything they need for a balanced diet. Everything. Vitamins, minerals, protein, fiber. If that is all they eat they will do fine.

The general rule of thumb is that anything else should amount to no more than 10% of their diet and they will still get a balanced diet. In practical terms, if they can't clean it up in 10 to 20 minutes then it's more than that 10%. You can feed them other things every day if you wish as long as it is below that 10% threshold.

They do not need herbs, spices, vinegar, scratch, or anything else if they have a balanced diet. Many people feed them that stuff because they think it helps but as far as I'm concerned it just makes the people feel good that they are "helping" the chickens. But as long as it is not too much it does not hurt them.

All of this goes out of the window if yours forage for much of their food. If you let them forage much you have lost the ability to micromanage what they eat. They decide that. As long as they have good varied forage chickens are pretty good about maintaining a balanced diet. They tend to eat a bit of everything.

 

[easteregges]

I can walk you thru the research. The theory is sound. The problem is the math. The concentration of the bio-effective chemicals in those plants is so low that to have any significant, measureable, long term health benefit your chickens would have to eat huge quantities - and they won't. And its so variable in those plats as to not be reliably repeatable - a factor of the age of the plant, the time of the season, recent rainfall, soil conditions, and sometimes the variety of plant.

Plenty of people simply repeat it because they've heard it. Some even understand the broad theory - but that's where their knowledge stops. The problem is reliable dosage.

Ok. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.