Chicken Keeping Secrets

“We have a backyard flock 3-4 months old. Based on breed info available we can expect good egg laying potential from all of them and a variety of egg color… IF we feed them correctly. That is the part I don’t really know.

Do all chickens eat the same diet? We are using a Chick/Starter feed that is nutritionally complete, not sure at all what all that means now. 2 sex-links, 2 Americana, 2 WHITE ones ;-) Is there something else I should be feeding them?” ~ Hal

Hi Hal,

Welcome to the wonderful world of chicken keeping.

It’s a lot of fun.

To simply answer your question, all chickens that are raised for laying do eat the same thing.

Broilers, which are raised for meat require a diet that puts on weight quickly because you typically dress them by 12 weeks. The category of broilers include specific breeds, none of which you own.

Your breeds, sex-links, Americana and probably Leghorns are all raised for eggs.

Sex-links, of which there are a variety, are great because the color of their feathers determine whether they are male or female – no unexpected roosters in this group.

Americanas typically lay blue-green eggs. They are beautiful and in high demand at our farmer’s market.

And Leghorns are the “Egg Laying Machines” of the chicken world. Their eggs are white and you should have a constant supply.

I think you have a great little flock.

I’ll explain the different stages of commercial feed so you understand what to feed and when to feed it. (more…)

“What is the proper way to feed broiler chicks to maturity? I have 2 1/2 week old chicks on starter feed – they are feathering out now. Do I need to change from starter to a different protein such as grower, corn or what? Looking forward to response” ~ Julia

Hi Julia,

Thanks for the question.

Broilers do require a different diet than a layer or even a dual purpose bird.

For those who are not familiar, broilers are strictly meat birds.

They are often referred to as fryers.

They are bred to grow rapidly so that they are ready for the dinner table between 4 and 10 weeks of age.

As early as 4 weeks, they are marketed as Cornish hens. Closer to 7 weeks they will be ready for the grocery store. After 8 weeks, these birds are used most often for de-boned chicken products like nuggets or sandwiches.

Because broilers need to grow quickly, they present some physical challenges in addition to specific nutritional requirements.

Rapid growth requires maximum food consumption.

For this reason, it is often recommended that you raise your broilers with 24 hours of light each day so that they have continuous access to food.

Once the heat lamps have been removed from your brooder box (usually around 4 weeks depending on your climate,) you would hang a 40 watt light bulb at 6 feet above the birds.

You can of course forego the artificial light but the growth rate will be slower. (more…)

“I noticed that you have stated that it is ok to give meat to chickens in this last newsletter. I have been told that you should not give chooks “meat” of any description, that they are vegetarian. Is this true please? Regards” ~ Jan

Hi Jan,

I’m glad you wrote.

Although we don’t often think of it as “meat”, a major component in a chicken’s diet is the bugs and worms they so fondly enjoy unearthing.

Chickens are not vegetarian.

It is okay to give your flock well cooked meat scraps.

I don’t recommend fish though unless you know it’s origin.

Protein is extremely important in a chicken’s diet.

If you’re feeding home rations, make sure you are giving them plenty of protein in whatever form you prefer.

Thanks for the question Jan.

“I have 3 layers which my husband and I enjoy tremendously. The one question is how to keep them from wasting so much feed. They throw it out of the feeder, which is hanging on the side of their pen. Otherwise they are doing wonderful and love being out.” ~ Sue Cripe

Sue thanks for the question.

There are a couple of thing you can do to help prevent, or at least cut down on wasted feed; you’ve already taken care of the first one. Whenever you have feed in a container on the ground, your chickens will likely scratch in it and kick quite a bit out onto the ground.

At one point we temporarily separated a number of our chickens from the rest of the flock.

We didn’t have an extra feeder available so we chose to use a plastic dish pan for this temporary situation. As soon as feed was placed in the pan, the chickens hopped in and started scratching in it. Needless to say, we lost a lot of feed that way.

Feeders are made to be suspended off the ground in some way. This keeps the chickens from scratching the feed out onto the ground. If you make your own feeder, it is helpful to make it in such a way that you can suspend it. At the very least, may I suggest that you raise the feeder on bricks or some such thing so that it is not too high for the chickens to reach the food, but high enough that they can’t scratch at it. (more…)

This week in our basics series, we’ll be discussing chicken grit, a necessary supplement for your chicks as well as your mature chickens.

The need for grit varies depending on your chicken’s diet. To understand when it is necessary, we must first understand the way a chicken digests its food; Chickens do not have teeth and therefore do not chew their food.

Chickens swallow their food whole. The food moves into the crop, a sort of doggy bag for holding. The crop allows birds to consume large amounts of food quickly so as to not be vulnerable to predators. (more…)