DIY / Homemade Flock Birdseed Cake / Seed Block

[Nifty-Chicken]

I've got a big bag of seeds (as mentioned in my Grazing Frame thread), so I thought it might be fun to have a go at making seed cakes / blocks that my girls can peck-at during the Winter months.

Anybody have experience making these? Ideally they would be:

1. Not too soft that the chickens can instantly decimate them.
2. Not too hard that they can't get at the seed at all.

Any other tips / tricks / suggestions?

Here are a couple videos that caught my interest:

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

One thing I'm not loving is the corn syrup. I'm not sure this is good for the birds, so alternatives would be nice.

 

[Sally PB]

One thing I'm not loving is the corn syrup. I'm not sure this is good for the birds, so alternatives would be nice.

Is honey an alternative, or is it just better to skip the sweeteners altogether?

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Is honey an alternative, or is it just better to skip the sweeteners altogether?

I'm not well-versed in the world of ingredients. If it's just a matter of flavor, I'd leave it all out completely.

Honestly, all I want is a really strong bonding agent that will keep the seeds all together and make a bit of a challenge for the girls to get at (without it being impossible).

If the gelatin alone will do that (or any other healthy ingredient), then I'm happy.

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

Here's the seed I'll be using:

 

[Jerhanner]

One thing I'm not loving is the corn syrup. I'm not sure this is good for the birds, so alternatives would be nice.

All the recipes I've seen have molasses, not syrup. I'll see if i can find it again... here we go: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2013/10/diy-flock-block.html

 

[Jerhanner]

I printed out a whole bunch of different recipes. The ingredients which they all have are molasses and eggs. After that, it seems like you can use your imagination.

 

[Weeg]

Here, is article has a recipe for DIY flock block! - https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-complete-list-of-boredom-busters.76129/