- Aug 14, 2012
- 76
- 27
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Oats are high fiber so hens can't eat as much high nutrient content feed and it speeds their bowel transit time, if you know what I mean, and you pay for the useless fiber by the pound.
And some animals don't like the oats anyway.
I would not want a feed that is mainly whole oats. Steel cut oats or maybe oat groats.
I do add some oats occasionally to their fermented feed because oats have anti-nutrients in it that need enzymes to break down.
I was fermenting most of my feed but my hens slowed laying. I think they overate the yummy fermented whole grains.
Too much grain and they can get fat. Except I have never seen a fat Leghorn or Calif White, poor things look like they are starving!
Maybe because it was soft they ate less grit and got less nutrient??
Anyway, I went back to less fermented feed, and some organic non-GMO pellets and some dry mash or grains.
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http://www.extension.org/pages/67363/feeding-oats-to-poultry#.U6hkSbH_pIo
In the past, oats were used sparingly in poultry diets primarily because, aside from having a high fiber content, oats contain beta-glucans. Beta-glucans are antinutritional factors that reduce nutrient availability.
The availability of feed enzymes has led to renewed interest in "alternative" grains, including oats. Enzyme supplementation of oats has been shown to compensate for
the antinutritional factors and improve growth performance in broilers.
Whole oats have a high fiber content. Poultry are not able to digest fiber very well, so the inclusion of oat grain in poultry diets reduces the availability of dietary energy and other nutrients. Because of this combination of high fiber and low energy, oats are better suited for use in pullet developers and breeder diets.
And some animals don't like the oats anyway.
I would not want a feed that is mainly whole oats. Steel cut oats or maybe oat groats.
I do add some oats occasionally to their fermented feed because oats have anti-nutrients in it that need enzymes to break down.
I was fermenting most of my feed but my hens slowed laying. I think they overate the yummy fermented whole grains.
Too much grain and they can get fat. Except I have never seen a fat Leghorn or Calif White, poor things look like they are starving!
Maybe because it was soft they ate less grit and got less nutrient??
Anyway, I went back to less fermented feed, and some organic non-GMO pellets and some dry mash or grains.
-----------------------
http://www.extension.org/pages/67363/feeding-oats-to-poultry#.U6hkSbH_pIo
In the past, oats were used sparingly in poultry diets primarily because, aside from having a high fiber content, oats contain beta-glucans. Beta-glucans are antinutritional factors that reduce nutrient availability.
The availability of feed enzymes has led to renewed interest in "alternative" grains, including oats. Enzyme supplementation of oats has been shown to compensate for
the antinutritional factors and improve growth performance in broilers.
Whole oats have a high fiber content. Poultry are not able to digest fiber very well, so the inclusion of oat grain in poultry diets reduces the availability of dietary energy and other nutrients. Because of this combination of high fiber and low energy, oats are better suited for use in pullet developers and breeder diets.
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