My 3 chickens wont ear their food at all

[hmmm]

I have theee chickens that will start laying eggs in Jan 2017. The chickens have a coop with shelter and a run. I was keping the feed unde the shelter but the chickens did not touch it. I put it in the run ate some but,would not eat it all. The chickens seam to always be pecking on the ground in the run. I put a Feed container up in the coop and after 2 days they dont seem to touch it. I noticed if I throw it on ground or,hand feed they will eat it. Is it possable the chickens,do not know it is up in the coop near nesting boxes? Is,it possable they are getting enough bugs on the 6 ft long by 4 foot wide run? I do not undestand why they are not eating the pellets from feeder. I give egg shells at time .. I assume they get grit from the dirt. I give them grass and other vegitation
at times but to me it seems they just peck at the ground And I am not sure how they seem to be growing so well. If hungry enough will they go to the inside of their coop to find food .. do I throw it on ground... Do I keep it outside and hope it does not rain. Any tips or advice of what type of feeders or what to do would be appreciated. I am also planning on letting the forage starting in Jan.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Do you mean January 2018 for onset of lay?

 

[hmmm]

Yes, sorry for the typos I jusr re wrote post. Yes, Jan 2018 they will be of laying age.

 

[peeper89]

u give layer food to them?
how old is they - soundlike they young still. prob need start or grow food.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

So they just hatched?

 

[chickens really]

They need depending on their age?....Starter or grower until they start laying....They don't require egg shell or oyster shell till they lay eggs....Layer feed is for actively laying Hens.....

 

[chicks are life]

At 16 weeks chicks switch to laying feed

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'm guessing they are 3 to 4 weeks old. Could you please confirm age? If they are growing without eating much of the feed they are obviously getting food from somewhere. What does the floor of you run look like? What is it made from, bare dirt, some sort of bedding or is it still grass? A photo may help. When I have chicks with a broody hen they often fill up with chick feed to start the day but most of the time during the day they are out pecking at the ground and vegetation. They peck a lot on bare ground, getting small rocks for grit, bits of decaying vegetation for nutrition, and even just dirt for minerals. They eat a whole lot more than just bugs.

A photo of your feeder may help too in case we see issues. But at that age they should have no problems flying up to get to a feeder if they want to. Still, location may play a part.

What kind of feed are you offering them? There are different parts to this question. What form is the feed in, mash, crumbles, or pellets? And what is the name of the feed, Starter, Grower, Layer, Flock Raiser, or something else. Layer should have around 3.5% to 4.5% calcium, the others should have somewhere around 1% calcium. Calcium level is important relative to age. What is the percent protein? Calcium and protein percents should be on the label.

That run is pretty small for them to be able to forage efficiently but if it is still mostly grass and they are pretty young they may surprise some people. My broody hens mostly depend on foraging to feed their chicks for the first month though they do eat some Starter.