Simple, home made, natural chick starter and feed

[BBrady]

What is the simplest home made non medicated chick starter? I know they need about 25% protein, and I am a fan of serving what I have on hand anyway, or have easy access to, which includes: scrambled or hard boiled eggs, quick oats, instant grits (is that even ok to serve them? It's ground hominy, which is treated corn...) Greek or regular yogurt, nuts like peanuts, pecans, and walnuts, and seeds like chia seeds and flax seeds, dried lentils and black beans, and as an after thought, Cheerios and Rasin Bran cereals. Also, we have Timothy hay around for guinea pigs, but I don't expect itty bitty chicks would know how to eat that.

I have learned a lot about what chicks and layers need to be eating through the BYC learning center and other recent posts to this site, including some external links and some recipes for homemade feed that frankly had too many ingredients to be practical for me. Honestly it sounds really complicated to make your own feed which makes me a little sad, and I really am not interested in doing feed store chick starter. I suppose my reasons are philosophical: I at least want to know what I am feeding my chicks, even if I can't source it locally yet. If I buy feed and then I run out and can't get to the store, I want to not freak out or loose chicks to starvation. The guinea pigs get all my fruit and veggie scraps plus hay, and rarely get pellets unless we are out all day, and even then I buy extra veg just for them that I serve whole.

I am not at all afraid of hard work or complicated feed prep, but as a new homesteader, I have a lot going on, so if there is a simple solution, I'd like to try that first. I get it that chickens are extremely domesticated birds and take a LOT of care, feeding, and protection. I think I'm up for that I just don't want to have to get a degree in animal husbandry in order to feed my flock according to my values.

I have a dozen Rhode Island Red chicks coming Wednesday, from the feed store who is getting them from McMurray Hatchery. I have brooders set up ready to go, just need to lock in what I'm feeding them before I pick them up next week! I plan to use them for layers primarily and for roasters if possible later on or if there are boys in the run.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[cmchickens]

Hello! Welcome to BYC!

The protein percentage for chick starter is %18. The reason feed recipes are so complicated is because they need specific nutrition. While I'm sure grown chickens with lots of room to range would be okay with getting a little of this and a little of that so long as they weren't expected to produce at their best. But chicks grow fast and need proper nutrition. If you want to feed a homemade feed, I would stick to a recipe or craft a recipe from ingredients you find acceptable, paying attention to not only protein content but also vitamin, mineral, and fat content. I would also keep in mind that chick feed would likely need to be ground fine, as things like nuts, beans, cereal, would likely be too big for them to eat.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

What is the simplest home made non medicated chick starter? I know they need about 25% protein, and I am a fan of serving what I have on hand anyway, or have easy access to, which includes: scrambled or hard boiled eggs, quick oats, instant grits (is that even ok to serve them? It's ground hominy, which is treated corn...) Greek or regular yogurt, nuts like peanuts, pecans, and walnuts, and seeds like chia seeds and flax seeds, dried lentils and black beans, and as an after thought, Cheerios and Rasin Bran cereals. Also, we have Timothy hay around for guinea pigs, but I don't expect itty bitty chicks would know how to eat that.

I have learned a lot about what chicks and layers need to be eating through the BYC learning center and other recent posts to this site, including some external links and some recipes for homemade feed that frankly had too many ingredients to be practical for me. Honestly it sounds really complicated to make your own feed which makes me a little sad, and I really am not interested in doing feed store chick starter. I suppose my reasons are philosophical: I at least want to know what I am feeding my chicks, even if I can't source it locally yet. If I buy feed and then I run out and can't get to the store, I want to not freak out or loose chicks to starvation. The guinea pigs get all my fruit and veggie scraps plus hay, and rarely get pellets unless we are out all day, and even then I buy extra veg just for them that I serve whole.

I am not at all afraid of hard work or complicated feed prep, but as a new homesteader, I have a lot going on, so if there is a simple solution, I'd like to try that first. I get it that chickens are extremely domesticated birds and take a LOT of care, feeding, and protection. I think I'm up for that I just don't want to have to get a degree in animal husbandry in order to feed my flock according to my values.

I have a dozen Rhode Island Red chicks coming Wednesday, from the feed store who is getting them from McMurray Hatchery. I have brooders set up ready to go, just need to lock in what I'm feeding them before I pick them up next week! I plan to use them for layers primarily and for roasters if possible later on or if there are boys in the run.

Thanks in advance for your help!

If a complete home concocted feed ration is too complicated, then buy a complete chicken feed.
I'm not a big fan of big ag but after over 100 years of poultry nutrition research, we know what nutrients chickens need.
There isn't a simple ration.
Feed companies can make an appropriate feed at a reasonable cost because of research and the economy of scale.
They buy grain and legumes by the trainload and micro nutrients by the ton. You would be buying grains by the 50 LB. bag and other things by the pound. There is no way for someone with a few chickens to replicate that complete nutrition without spending at least 3 times the cost of commercial feed and definitely without it being complicated.

 

[TalkALittle]

I think you would really like Scratch and Peck feeds. Visit their website and take a look at the ingredient list for their chick starter.

While it might seem contrary to reason, the simplest way for small homesteaders and backyard chicken keepers to be sure of providing a complete balanced feed is to purchase a prepared feed.

 

[Vian]

I use scratch and peck feed for my chickens and I'm very happy with it. The ingredients are good and they have a corn and soy free version (I have an autoimmune disease and it flairs up if I eat eggs from chickens fed corn or soy). They also use fish meal, which I think is good because chickens are omnivores anyway. My chickens are semi-free-range (they have a fenced off corner of the yard that is about 260 square feet full of grass with deer netting stretched over the top to keep out predators) so they are eating bugs and grass too, but they also have constant acess to the scratch and peck feed. My chicks are only 6 weeks old right now, but they are almost fully feathered and growing really fast. I also feed them kitchen scraps.

 

[Farkha Laziza]

I have to admit some of these posts sound like commercials for chicken feed.

But what if you live somewhere where this prepackaged chicken feed is simply not available? What are you supposed to do? Saying that the formula feeds are easiest is not helpful when they aren't even available to you.

And while I agree people today have a more scientifically based idea of what chickens need to eat than 100 years ago, the fact is chickens have been fed by man for 1000s of years and it isn't as if the ability to feed them is some sort of modern discovery. People had to be feeding chickens SOMETHING before big business got involved.

I'm not going to be able to stop into the local feed store and pick up a bag of feed when I start with my chickens so I really would appreciate some sort of practical advice here about how to meet the nutritional needs of chickens from scratch, so to speak.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The OP and I both live in the same state and I've done the math many times. Many of the ingredients from corn to oats to alfalfa to lentils and peas run anywhere from $11 to $33 for a 50 pound bag. Then I have to come up with a mix that gets all the nutrients the chickens need in the right ratio and still add a vitamin and mineral supplement. Or I can buy a bag of chicken feed for somewhere between $12 and $16 that takes care of it. I'm not advertising for feed companies but the problem is economy of scale. I would be buying supplements by the pound and feed mills buy by the ton. I would buy main ingredients by the 50 pound bag and they're buying by the trainload.

As for people having kept chickens for centuries.
However, hundreds of years ago, chickens didn't lay an egg every day like some breeds do now. They laid more like 80-120 a year.
Meat chickens didn't reach 7 lbs. in as many weeks. They took 3 months to reach 3 lbs
For hundreds of years some form of milk (sour, skim, whole, butter, etc.) was added to grain to increase the essential amino acids. Fishmeal is another good animal protein that may be available to you.
..
OK @Farkha Laziza I hope this helps.
I was discussing this with someone from Ethiopia yesterday.
Every part of the world is going to have different appropriate ingredients based on climate and what grows there. The trick is to provide the 36+ nutrients that are essential in adequate levels.
Here's an online book from the 1800s on feeding chickens.
http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924003011545;view=1up;seq=1
Poultry production in Africa
http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/home/events/bangkok2007/docs/part1/1_6.pdf
http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/w8989e/w8989e02.htm
https://krex.k-state.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2097/2322/SalissouIssa2009.pdf?sequence=1


http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Feeding+from+Home+Resources.html

http://www.veeru.reading.ac.uk/comp2/Poultryweb/disease/nutri/nutri1.htm

http://extension.missouri.edu/p/G8352

http://www.avianaquamiser.com/posts/Protein_content_in_chicken_feed_ingredients/

 

[BBrady]

Folks, please remember this thread is seeking the practical information about what flock owners use in their home made starter feed because people all over the place are feeding homemade feed to their flocks which are thriving. It isn't difficult but it can be overwhelming when starting up, and this community does a great job of supporting new people wanting to raise chickens. All advice is welcome, but if it isn't relevant its hard not to get frustrated..
Farkha Laziza, here is a relatively simple recipe for layers that I am going to start with for my LAYER hens https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/947979/conventional-non-gmo-whole-grain-seed-recipe-for-layers, i recommend looking at the nutritional data for each ingredient and finding a comparable substitute if something isn't available in your area. Also, this is not quite starter feed, which is what we are searching for. I am going to use this recipe as a base and modify or substitute ingredients or portions to have the appropriate nutritional balance appropriate for starter/grower feed. For example, I hear that barley is not appropriate to feed until your bird have started laying. Also, I am able to grow these ingredients on my property in addition to my vegetable garden and herb gardens, so I will make that a priority if not this season than next. Buying everything this season will help me figure out about how much i plan to use and thus about how much to grow. I will keep this thread updated with what i find for good home made starter feed. I will also be excited to switch out currently available ingredients for organic, non GMO, locally sourced ingredients.
Buying 50 lb bags of a half dozen ingredients to make your own feed ends up only costing about $20 per 50 lb batch, according to my friend here who posted the recipe at the above linked post. She can get ingredients ordered through her local mill who is willing to sell 50 lb bag portions. Of course you have to be able to afford these up front costs and have storage capacity.
ChickenCanoe, I cannot wait to dig into all those links, that info looks like relevant answers to some of our questions. I find it disheartening that getting chickens to be so heavy so quickly, or to lay so many eggs per year, could be a goal of a back yard chicken owner, although I understand the practical value of getting more meat and eggs on less feed. For the back yard chicken flock, or for the small farmer/homesteader, where free ranging is a practical option, we can simply have more chickens to meet our "meat" and egg quantity goals, as well as having mixed breed flocks, and other small meat and dairy animals like goats, helping to provide food for the family and the local farmers market.The cost of that solution is offset of course by having the animals all free range as often as possible to keep feed cost/need from doubling and to keep the animals healthy from a varied natural diet and activity level.
Also, I may not have clearly stated this before, but my goal as a homesteader is to be able to provide food for my family from what I can produce myself on my property. If i can raise livestock that self propagates and eats what I grow for it, then I only have to make an initial investment in the seeds and the first generation of animals, plus my sweat and elbow grease and brain space which is highly rewarding. I also have the capacity to invest in some degree of bulk items (such as the 50 lb bags of ingredients instead of just 50 lb bags of premixed feed) because I have property and storage capacity for that. For those who have different priorities and goals for their flock, less storage space, different time or financial capacities, it will make more sense to choose a premixed feed.

 

[BBrady]

By the way, i am reading through the links now, and they are so very rich in excellent data, thank you so much ChickenCanoe!

 

[Farkha Laziza]

I also want to thank ChickenCanoe for the links but also to echo what BBrady said. Not everyone is looking to maximize their egg and meat output even when eggs and meat are part of the equation. Already the chickens I will be partially responsible for ARE eating homemade feeds and kitchen scraps and are producing both eggs and meat. When we move there these foods will be increased but if there is a way to tweak the balance of what they are already being fed to improve production, that is fine. I also am interested in using them to produce compost as that way we can grow more of our own food because the soil we have is not good at the moment because it is basically decades of hardpacked layers of livestock manure. But I am not going to go out of my way to SPEND extra money in order to increase chicken and egg production when the majority of what can sustain them is free or very cheap already. That is where the cost equation breaks down. A certain number of eggs and meat chickens a month may be all some people need.