How much to feed pastured chickens?

[IkerdFarm]

I have a 960ft² area for 16 chickens, so 60ft² per chicken. Lots of grass, lots of bugs. How much feed should I put in their feeder each day? Is 2lbs per day enough for 16 pasture-fed chickens?

 

[cherrynberry]

I have a 960ft² area for 16 chickens, so 60ft² per chicken. Lots of grass, lots of bugs. How much feed should I put in their feeder each day? Is 2lbs per day enough for 16 pasture-fed chickens?

I would free feed, in the afternoon, so that they forage during the day, so just free feed them for an hour or a few hours a day, chickens don’t eat that much...

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Give them free feed. Odds are they'll still need a lot of minerals and vitamins in the feed

 

[NatJ]

I would leave feed available to them all day long, from sunup to sundown. They won't eat in the dark, so you can leave the feed or take it away to prevent rats eating it.

In my experience, chickens seem to like grass and bugs better than the purchased feed, so they will eat less of the feed when they are finding more grass and bugs. But some days they don't find many bugs, and some days the grass is tough and not appetizing (not as nutritious either), so they eat more feed on those days.

It's easiest to just let the chickens balance it for themselves.

16 chickens probably eat 4-6 pounds of food per day if they are not foraging. If they start going through much more than that you would want to see if they are spilling it or if other animals are eating it too.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I have about 4.5 acres in which my flock (see Sig, below) of between 50 and 55 birds free ranges each day. Its split about 1.5 acres pasture, 3 acres of under-brushed woods. Conservatively, I have about 1,000 sq ft of pasture per bird. I feed once daily, in the evenings, to ensure they come back to the houses at night to roost, and sleep with full crops. Also means they are eager to forage when I open the gates in the AM.

The "thumb rule" is 1/4#/bird day, so I should be going thru about 13# feed per day +/-. I go thru 10# during the summer. A bit more late winter/early spring (benefit of long growing season, mild winters, "mixed" pasture). That works for me, took a while to dial in.

My advice, move to once a day feedings in the evening, measure and feed by the "thumb rule" and watch your flock eat for a week or two. Then adjust accordingly. If, after most of a week on the new schedule, your birds are gobbling it all up in 5 minutes still, and begging for more, you have heavy breeds that eat a lot! If, otoh (and as I expect) your birds feed for 10 minutes or so, then walk away and settle down, leaving feed behind, start cutting back. Then continue to monitor feedings periodically, and adjust accordingly.

Honestly, I'd be stunned if 2#/day meets their needs, even if the pasture is in full seed. That would equate to cutting your feed bill in half. I save about 20-25%.

 

[tigger19687]

You could also WET some feed too. With Summer here it makes sure they get a bit of fluid.
Mine go nuts for it but I only give it to them a few times a week normally.
With this heat I gave it to them yesterday afternoon and i'm about to go out and give them more. I have 6 Pullets and put about a cup of feed in, water, add more water till it's absorbed all the water. Depending on how thick it is I add a bit more water to make it like runny oatmeal

 

[Wolfie2]

Mine have All Flock, free choice all day. They are let out of the run for 8-10 hrs. They can eat what they want to. Feed gets put up for the night.

 

[Mtnboomer]

I have a 960ft² area for 16 chickens, so 60ft² per chicken. Lots of grass, lots of bugs. How much feed should I put in their feeder each day? Is 2lbs per day enough for 16 pasture-fed chickens?

I free range my flock of 15 birds. They can go wherever they want but tend to travel only about a 100 yrds radius from the coop. I give them free choice feed in 10lb container and fill it as needed (About once s week; more in winter less in summer)

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, welcome from Louisiana. Glad you joined.

I might feed young meat birds I'm trying to get to butcher size, chickens I'm raising for show, or a flock of laying hens differently. How much benefit they get from pasturing will depend on the quality of the forage. A manicured back yard that is never allowed to go to seed and has only on type of grass is not a forage-rich pasture. A pasture with various weeds and grasses, some of which are allowed to go to seed will provide more nutrition. Having animals like goats or cattle in with them can provide more nutrition from the poop or if they can steal their feed. Your climate, time of year, and weather plays a part. If it dries up and everything is dead at certain times of the year they won't get much benefit. If it stays wet enough and warm enough they can do much better. A desert is different than where you get lush growth. Not all pasture is created equally and your goals play a part.

Different things to consider. If you are talking about a backyard flock of bantam or full-sized chickens that are there mainly for eggs and the forage is reasonable decent feeding them what they eat late in the day should be OK, but be a little flexible to account for changing conditions.