Good pellets gone bad

[DeeAnn5]

Hello. We have just two hens, an Americauna, Lips and the Barred Rock, Little II. We kept the feed in 5-pound buckets with sealable lids in the basement but somehow it molded and the consistency looks bad. One of the buckets I am throwing away. RE: the other bucket - can I put those pellets in the oven and cook them to Re-dry them? They are probably a few months old...

We will start buying smaller amounts from now on. In the meantime, can these bad pellets be saved? they aren't moldy, they just changed color and expanded a little bit...

Is this going to make my chickens die? I usually supplement their diet daily with craed corn, cooked oatmeal, kale, tomatoes, just whatever I can find in the kitchen plus both fresh and dried mealworms. Also, tell me what I am doing wrong.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

As a fellow chicken owner, and one who lives in wet humid Oregon, I feel your pain. I've had feed go moldy and seen the dollars literally tossed out.

And yes, I would toss all pellets.

While you don't see mold in the "clean" pellets, they have obviously been compromised and mold is highly likely. Also, the nutritional quality will have been compromised.

Aspergillis is a deadly infection birds acquire from moldy feed. Drying won't likely kill the mold spores. Drying certainly won't improve degraded nutritional quality or any other kind of funk.

It simply isn't worth the risk in my mind.

I would also consider a different location than the basement. It obviously is too humid. Perhaps the garage or even a side building would be better?

Keeping the buckets dry but also having good air flow helps to prevent molding. Fill the buckets less full so there is more air flow under the lid, then place in a location that is out of the weather, water tight, and good air flow. (I actually keep my feed in the open sky in a metal garbage can with lid...filled about half to 3/4 full.)

My thoughts and experiences.

LofMc

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Another thought is to intentionally ferment your feed.

@lazy gardener ferments feed regularly. It will increase the nutritional absorbtion and probiotics in the chickens....but that is when feed is purposefully fermented rather than stagnated.

LofMc

 

[DeeAnn5]

OK will do.

 

[lazy gardener]

Here's an article about FF. Agreed, you risk the lives of your birds by serving up compromised feed.

https://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/

 

[GC-Raptor]

I agree with LofMc, Chuck it.
I only have 5 chickens, so a 40# bag lasts a while.
I keep my feed and scratch inside at room temperature, year round, in the original bag with the bag tightly closed with a bag clip. . I have 2 six gallon containers in the storage area of my coop. One for feed and one for scratch. They hold 25# of feed or scratch. I empty half a bag into container when container is empty. The galvanized containers are not air tight so moisture can escape when temperatures drop at night. GC

 

[Folly's place]

Throw that stuff away!!!
Always check the mill date on the feed bag, and buy what you can use in six weeks or so. That's a small amount with very few birds; can you share feed with someone else? It's not cheaper in large quantities if it spoils and looses vitamins while being stored too long!
Consider calling the feed company, and maybe your state poultry expert, to see if it will keep better in the freezer; I don't know. Mary

 

[DeeAnn5]

Thanks everyone. Lots of good info here! I did discard all of the bad feed and purchased a 10-pound bag. My husband and I may try using a vacuum food packaging. We usually use it for meat that is going to be frozen but wondering if it may preserve this feed...

 

[GC-Raptor]

Thanks everyone. Lots of good info here! I did discard all of the bad feed and purchased a 10-pound bag. My husband and I may try using a vacuum food packaging. We usually use it for meat that is going to be frozen but wondering if it may preserve this feed...

If you continue to buy feed in 10# bags, vacuum sealing shouldn't be necessary. Keep it inside in the original bag tightly closed.
I would think vacuum sealing would slow down oxidation of the vitamins, if you wanted to buy a larger bag. But I have not tried it. I have successfully used feed up to 5 months old from mill date when stored in original bag (tightly closed) at room temperature. But fresher is better. GC