What is "milo"?

[sally4500]

Hi, I saw at the grocery store today a bird food mixture of milo, millet and BOS. Can the chickens have milo? I don't know what it is. thanks.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Much more nutritious than corn, but it has the same bad qualities as corn: yellowing white feathers and creating heat (a problem in summer, not winter). I believe milo is related to corn, in the maize family, but does not form ears. It is the bb-sized red kernals in bird seed mixes.

 

[sally4500]

Thanks. I was looking for a seed mixture with only a few different seeds in it to make things simple for a scratch. So it looks like the milo is out.

I didn't know that corn turned their feathers yellow. I was noticing a tint in my white cochins feathers yesterday and was wondering what it could be from. Must be the corn. Thanks for that info!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Wheats, barley, oats, rice, peas (all sorts), sunflower seed, safflower seed, flax, millet...lots of other good seeds and grains.

 

[nancypo]

Have you tried rolled oats, millet, barley, etc? All really cheap in the bulk section of my grocery store. Millet is usually a component of "wild bird seed" mixes. Mine LOVE oats best!

 

[jomercer]

Quote:
Milo is the fruit of a grass in the genus Sorghum, it's also called grain sorghum. It's more closely related to sugar cane than it is maize. It's a common ingredient in wild and pet bird seed mixes.