What to feed baby chicks organic
Types of Food Baby Chicks Can & Cannot Eat
1 December
Chickens are great companions. They provide fresh eggs, nutrients for your lawn and years of entertainment with their big personalities. Best of all, baby chicks are easy to feed, willing to finish almost any of your daily leftovers.
A baby chicks’ diet is extremely versatile, but there are some foods to rethink before throwing them into the coop. Here, we’ll outline the nutrient-dense foods baby chicks love and the leftovers to keep in your compost pile.
What Are the Essential Nutrients for Chickens?
Baby chicks require a more nutrient-dense diet than their adult counterparts. When feeding your baby chicks, ensure their feed has the following nutrients:
- Protein: After hatching, a chick’s diet should include approximately 18% to 20% protein. Protein builds chicks’ muscles, promoting strength and bone integrity during their crucial developmental stages.
As baby chicks reach 19 weeks old, gradually taper their protein intake to about 16% of their diet.
- Vitamins: All poultry require fat- and water-soluble vitamins. Specifically, they require all vitamins except vitamin C, including vitamin A, D, E and K, niacin, folic acid, biotin, thiamine and riboflavin.
- Minerals: Minerals are equally important. Baby chicks require a diet with calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron and copper, among others.
- Grains: Most chicken feeds incorporate healthy grains, like corn, wheat and soybean meal. These grains act as sources of vitamins, oil and protein, which all poultry require for energy.
- Fats: Most of a chicken’s fat content comes from oils that contain linoleic acid, an important fatty acid. Fatty acids break down vitamins and minerals, allowing chickens to receive all of their benefits.
Baby chicks’ feed should provide at least 90% of their nutrition, with the remaining 10% from their pasture.
On top of their feed, poultry require a constant source of water. Chickens drink almost three times their weight in water. A good water-to-chicken ratio is one quart per four chickens.
What Can Baby Chickens Eat?
Do you plan on feeding your baby chicks a homemade diet? Consider incorporating these nutrient-rich foods:
1. Worms
Chickens love worms! Worms naturally exist in a chicken’s environment, so it’s in their biological makeup to enjoy worms. Specifically, baby chicks can eat mealworms and red worms. Both are great sources of protein, but avoid feeding your baby chickens too many worms, or it may overwhelm their system.
2. Crickets
As with worms, baby chicks can eat crickets, and they often do in their natural environment. Crickets are high in protein, fat and carbs, making them an ideal snack, in moderation, for baby chicks.
3. Tomatoes
Baby chicks can eat tomatoes, but they can’t eat the plant, leaves or flowers as they contain poisonous solanine.
Tomatoes themselves are full of essential vitamin K, folic acid, fiber, potassium and antioxidants. If you have a garden, toss any malformed tomatoes into your coop. Your chickens will be thankful!
4. Oatmeal
Oats are considered a superfood, full of vitamins, minerals and some protein. Baby chicks can eat both raw oats and warm oatmeal every now and then. Adding birdseed and plain yogurt boosts oatmeal’s nutrients, too!
5. Strawberries
Baby chicks can eat fruit, and they especially love strawberries. Strawberries contain many vitamins and minerals, namely iron, copper, magnesium, Vitamin B and potassium. Also, strawberries are packed with other anti-inflammatory antioxidants that keep your baby chicks healthy.
6. Bananas
If you have any brown, spotty bananas, your baby chicks will gladly eat them for you! Baby chicks can eat bananas, but avoid feeding them any unripe bananas. Bananas are high in Vitamin B6 and pyridoxine and a good source of magnesium, copper and healthy carbs.
7. Apples
Baby chicks can eat apples, but you should chop them up and remove any seeds for easier consumption and digestion. Apple sauce is another good apple alternative for chick food. Apples are a good source of carbs and contain fiber, potassium and Vitamin K, too.
8. Lettuce
When it comes to vegetables, baby chicks can eat lettuce, as well as kale, turnip greens and chard. Romaine lettuce is high in phosphorous, magnesium, potassium, vitamin K and folate, supplying your baby chick with almost all of the necessary minerals. Avoid iceberg lettuce, however, as it’s low in nutritional value and may cause diarrhea in your baby chickens.
9. Watermelons
Baby chicks can eat watermelons, but they should never consume watermelon rinds or seeds. Baby chicks may benefit from watermelon on hot summer days as an added source of hydration. Otherwise, it doesn’t offer many nutrients as chick food.
10. Grass
Adult hens typically peck through grass for insects and eat any smaller pieces of grass.
Usually, day or week-old chicks won’t show much interest in eating grass. Some owners give their chicks the option, however, because it encourages foraging.
What Can’t Baby Chickens Eat?
Some of your groceries, however, are best left for your compost pile. Foods that baby chickens cannot eat include:
- Onions
- Chocolate
- Avocados
- Eggplant
- Peanuts
- Moldy Bread
- Rhubarb
- Pickles
All of these foods contain different toxins that make baby chicks, and all other poultry, feel sick — or even cause death in extreme cases. Most chickens instinctively avoid these toxic foods. If your baby chicks do consume these toxins and you notice illness symptoms, give them plenty of access to electrolytes and extra nutrients. Chickens heal themselves over time in less severe cases.
What Is the Best Food for Baby Chicks?
The best food you can give your baby chicks is organic chicken starter feed.
The foods listed above are healthy for chicks — and you’re encouraged to recycle any leftovers — but they may receive too many or too little nutrients.
Organic chicken starter feed is packed with essential nutrients like:
- Organic carbs, including corn, soybean meal and wheat
- Organic soybean oil
- Calcium carbonate
- Zinc sulfate
- Copper sulfate
- Calcium iodate
- Vitamin D3
- Vitamin E
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin B12
- Riboflavin
- Folic acid
Opting for organic chicken starter feed over non-organic alternatives ensures your baby chicks receive non-medicated and non-GMO nutrients. Natural feeds contain little to no cheap filler products, giving you more nutrients for your money and your chickens a healthier lifestyle.
How Much Should You Feed Baby Chicks?
Baby chickens are good at eating what they need. Ensure your chicks have a constant supply of organic chicken starter feed and refill their supply as needed.
Because baby chicks and adult chickens require different amounts of nutrients, it’s best to separate them until the chicks are at least 2 months old. Plus, older chickens tend to be aggressive with smaller chicks, sometimes bullying them away from food. Keep an eye on every chick and make sure they’re all getting an equal share of chick food.
Shop Organic Chicken Starter Feed at Nature’s Best Organic Feeds
Kreamer Feed believed in organic food well before the grocery chains. Since 1998, we have been the leading certified organic feed manufacturer — best known for our brand, Nature’s Best Organic Feeds.
If you’re looking for the best feed for your baby chicks, choose our high-protein organic chick starter. Our chicken feed is packed with essential nutrients, perfect for your growing backyard animals and baby chicks.
Learn more about our organic chicken starter feed online. You can find our products at your nearest Tractor Supply Co., which you can locate directly on our product page!
Feeding Backyard Chickens Organically and Affordably
Raising your own chickens comes with consistent inexpensive and organic benefits.
Whether you’re raising them for meat, or you want eggs fresh out of the hen oven, you are ultimately in charge of what you feed your chickens. Depending on why you have chickens, you may want to feed them with different things. But overall, you will only want to feed them strictly organic items, otherwise, your eggs and/or meat will not be organic as a result.
Why should you feed your chickens organically?
By feeding backyard chickens organically, you reap the benefits of producing top quality, non-GMO eggs. Whether you want to consume those eggs or care for them, they’ll be organic. When you feed your backyard chickens organic feed, you’re allowing the products of those chickens to also be free from unnatural or chemical interference. That means organic meat and eggs when the time comes. No need to run to the grocery store and purchase those $6 per dozen set of eggs anymore.
Now let’s talk about the generic chicken feed. Just because you have backyard chickens producing your daily dose of breakfast eggs, doesn’t mean they’ll be organic if you’re feeding them that unnatural stuff.
What an animal produces solely depends on what they eat. In other words, you wouldn’t want to consume stale, plastic, possibly contaminated food, would you? Probably not, because your body would reflect it. Just like when you feed your chicks standard feed!
Of course, not all feeds are chalked full of plastic, but what about that GMO corn? Yup, you can bet that’s the main ingredient in commercial-grade feed. Since corn acts as an empty carbohydrate, it merely increases the chicken’s energy levels with little to no nutritional value. While this is satisfactory in the winter months, as it keeps them active enough to stay warm, you don’t want to be simply feeding your chickens empty carbohydrates for the duration of their life. Would you want to eat the same thing every day if it provided no nutritional value to your health? I didn’t think so.
Feeding Backyard Chickens Organically
So, if you’re reading this article, you’re either:
- thinking about getting backyard chickens (we applaud your research),
- have them and don’t know what to feed them
- or have seen the cost of organic chicken feed and are looking for an alternative.
Well, guess what, there IS an alternative.
Finding organic chicken feed in-stores is, most of the time, an impossible feat. Then, if you do find it, it is too expensive to even consider picking up. Yes, the struggle is real – but do not panic! We have a solution for you.
Homemade, Organic Chicken Feed
Chickens are foragers, yes, foragers! Meaning they’ll eat small bugs and mice as well as tomatoes and grass. They’ll most likely eat up everything in your garden if you let them.
You can easily feed your backyard chickens’ name-brand feed, but they won’t get the benefits that come with organic feed. Chickens literally can eat most scraps in your kitchen. Even common household foods that you hardly use. Some ingredients you can include in your feed include the following:
- Wheat (hard or soft): This helps to provide energy, protein, lysine, and tryptophan, which is found in higher concentrations within wheat than corn.
- Peas: When you add in peas to your feed, you need to be sure the peas do not make up more than 20% to 30% of the entire batch of feed. If you add too many peas, your chickens may have trouble digesting the protein. The benefits of adding peas include a good source of protein, fiber, and amino acids, as well as energy. If you’re feeling ambitious and have space, try planting a patch of pea shrubs (Caragana Arborescens), a nitrogen-fixing crop that your chickens will find quite tasty!
- Weeds: Yes, move your chickens to that plot of land you’re too lazy to go weed this weekend. Your chickens will go crazy and weed it all away for you! Not only is it free, but most of the weeds in your yard will also provide loads of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients to your flock.
- Mealworms (live or freeze-dried): This is one of our chickens’ favorites. When the rooster sees the bag, he immediately starts clucking and running around in circles.
Anyways, there are loads of reasons to feed mealworms to your flock! Some of these include being a great source of protein and aids during the molting season, so they can easily regrow their feathers. - Oats/Oatmeal: You can choose to feed oats to your flock either cooked or raw; they will love them either way! By providing them with this in their feed, you will be giving your chicks an extra boost of antioxidants, as well as loads of protein and vitamins.
- Sunflowers and Their Seeds: These are a great little treat for your chickens and can even be added to a big batch of feed. The nutritional benefits include methionine, an essential amino acid, as well as vitamin E and magnesium. Plant a bed of beautiful sunflowers for a visual treat that no one will ever guess is really chicken feed in disguise!
- Corn: While corn does provide energy, as well as protein and essential amino acids, you will want to avoid too much of this as corn is mostly just empty calories.
Typically, it should be used as a filler, instead of a base. - Kelp: Some of the key minerals in kelp meal include calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium and potassium. Additionally, there are a number of B vitamins, as well as vitamins K and A. To give it to your chickens, simply toss some into their feeder for an added boost.
- Crushed Eggshells: Yes, you can feed crushed eggshells to your chickens. It’s actually a great source of calcium for them. Whether you decide to simply crush and serve or bake them in the oven and then crush them, your chickens will enjoy! (Check out this article to find out what else you can do with eggshells)
- Fresh Veggies & Fruit Scraps: This is by far the simplest way to feed your chickens and one we use quite frequently. Instead of taking our food scraps and composting them, we often start a container and refrigerate it until there are enough scraps to feed the flock. Literally, just about anything can be used to feed your chickens, as long as it’s still fresh enough that you would eat it yourself.
- Bokashi: Another favorite for our chickens is homemade bokashi! This is an amazing probiotic for your flock. And, expect loads of clucking when you walk into the coop with a handful of this! It’s super simple to make right at home, or you can purchase it (eek – expensive!). Either way, just grab a handful and throw it down. The chicks will quickly begin scratching to nibble up all the delicious bokashi on the ground!
Storage & Quantity
You can literally create your chicken feed out of anything. However, it’s important you keep your feed fresh at all times. Would you eat rotten food? Nope. It’ll probably make your tummy hurt, and no one wants that. That’s why the same thing goes for your chicks! Store your feed the same way you’d store your leftovers. Depending on what your feed consists of, you’ll want to store it in an airtight container, as well as in a cool and dry area, or simply choose to place it in the fridge.
You may be tempted to create tons and tons of chicken feed at once, but that isn’t necessarily a good idea.
Portions of nutrients could be tampered with, and the food can end up going bad quickly. When mixing up your batch, just be sure you have enough to last until you have time to make more. Additionally, you may think about planning ahead and keeping an extra bag of store-bought feed lying around in case of an emergency. Don’t let your little ladies go hungry!
Chicken Feed Recipe (50 lb. Batch)
It is important to feed your chicken a well-balanced diet to supplement their foraging efforts. A well-balanced chicken feed consists of 15 to 25 percent corn, 25 to 30 percent grains, 5 to 10 percent oats, 5 to 15 percent seeds, 5 to 10 percent vegetables, 5 percent fish meal, a handful of kelp, and a source of calcium like aragonite or oyster shells. The following is a recipe for a 50-lb batch of chicken feed:
- 3 cups corn
- 3 cups wheat
- 3 cups barley
- 3 cups peas
- 2 cups milo
- 1 cup oats
- 1 cup fish meal
- 1 cup seeds, e.
g. flax, sunflower, pumpkin - 1/4 cup kelp
- 1/4 cup aragonite
- 1/4 cup poultry Nutri-balancer (optional)
The Importance of a Grazing Area
Instinctively, chickens want to scratch and peck the ground in search of food. When allowed to graze, they will consume both insects and plants, including grass, and this is how they receive much of their diet’s vital nutrients. Chickens that graze often produce nutrient-rich eggs with deep orange yolks and meat that is high in good, Omega-3 fats. Also, the chickens get plenty of exercise, sunlight, and fresh air while grazing in a pasture-like setting.
Another thing to consider when allowing your chickens to graze is protecting them from natural predators–ones that hunt both from the ground like foxes, coyotes, and even dogs and from the air like hawks, eagles, and owls. It is important for maintaining the vitality of your flock that you provide them with a safe environment for grazing and foraging.
Fresh Feed in Winter
During the winter, chickens will consume 40 to 60 percent more because their bodies need the extra calories to keep warm.
You can boost their calorie and nutrient consumption by feeding them:
- Warm Oatmeal: A warm, nutritious morning meal, oatmeal is a nice alternative to the dry oats that your chickens typically eat. It is a good source of vitamins, proteins, and antioxidants.
- Scratch: A blend of high-caloric corn and grains, scratch will provide your chickens with supplemental protein and amino acids that will help keep them warm during winter.
- Mealworms: Chickens love mealworms. So, you can boost their protein intake by regularly feeding them one of their favorite snacks. Scatter the worms on the ground or the floor of their coop so that the chickens can forage for the worms as they typically would when the ground is not frozen or covered over by snow.
- Dark, Leafy Greens: A great substitute for grass, kale, and spinach as well as any other salad greens are nutrient-dense and will balance out your chickens’ diet during the winter months.
- Scrambled Eggs: Eggs are an excellent source of high-calorie protein for your chickens.
Feeding them warm scrambled eggs in the evening will help them stay warm on cold winter nights.
diet in the first days of life, chicken feed norms
| The diet of chickens, especially small ones, is different from the diet of adult chickens. Many breeders who raise chickens in the household are interested in how and what to feed the chicks so that they develop properly. For healthy growth, chickens require a balanced diet in sufficient quantities. The composition of the products depends on the direction and age of the chicks. |
Content:
- What does healthy chicks eat?
- General rules for formulating rations
- What to feed chickens?
- General rules for feeding
- Feed for chickens of various ages
- Feeding frequency
- Feeding Features
- Farmer's Councils
What does a healthy chicken diet consist of?
Sources of proteins, vitamins, micro and macro elements are products of plant and animal origin, as well as substances synthesized in the laboratory.
For the production of finished formulations in the factory, only high-quality proven raw materials are used. In feed for laying hens and broilers are introduced:
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It is quite difficult to independently calculate the proportions and mix the components thoroughly without the appropriate equipment.
General dietary guidelines
The terms of growing meat breeds are 1.5-2 months, laying hens - up to six months. During this time, the bird should gain weight of 2.5-3 kg. To accelerate the growth of muscle mass in broilers, it is recommended to use specialized feed. It fully meets the needs of the bird in proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. The composition and consumption of feed should be appropriate for the age of the chicks.
At 1-2 weeks of life, the foundation of the skeleton is laid in chickens, muscle mass increases at an average pace. At this time, it is necessary to introduce a sufficient amount of proteins, fiber, and mineral components into their diet.
In the growth phase, chickens are gaining weight intensively. They need as many amino acids and proteins as possible, which act as a building material for cells, as well as complex carbohydrates. The dose of vitamins and minerals received with food is increased.
At the finishing stage, the amount of carbohydrates is reduced so that the broilers gain more muscle mass, and not fat. At this stage, it is important to prevent weight loss. For these purposes, finishing compound feed is introduced into the diet.
What to feed chickens?
Cereals form the basis of the diet.
| Corn | One of the most useful and nutritious ingredients. Corn is the leader among grains in terms of protein content, while it contains less fiber than other cereals. The product is easily digested and well absorbed. |
|---|---|
| oats | Source of many amino acids. It is considered a dietary product, but contains a lot of fiber. In large quantities, it causes blockage of the intestines, so its share in the composition of the feed does not exceed 20%. Oats are given in a purified form, completely removing the film from the grains. The size of the fraction depends on the age of the bird. Sifted oatmeal is usually added to prestarter formulations. |
| Wheat | Contains a large amount of vitamin E, B. Feed wheat is usually used in bird feed. The percentage can be up to 30%. |
| Rye | It is a source of a number of useful proteins, but contains too much mucus, which negatively affects the digestive system of chickens. It is added to some feeds in small quantities. |
| Barley | Practically not inferior to oats in useful properties, but also contains a lot of fiber. It is introduced into the composition only in a purified and sifted form. |
| Buckwheat | Despite the fact that the product contains components useful for poultry, it is rarely used. Basically, it is added to granulated feed, because. in loose form, chickens do not peck it. |
| Bran | Products of processing grain crops are introduced to increase the caloric content of the diet. By themselves, they have no nutritional value, so they are rarely used. |
Peeled vegetables are used as succulent feed.
| Potato | Improves poultry digestion, promotes the absorption of nutrients. It is introduced in boiled dehydrated form. In the process of preparing food, it is unacceptable to use green potatoes, since poisonous solanine has formed in them. |
|---|---|
| Beet | It normalizes the work of the intestines, prevents its blockage, provides the needs of chickens for vitamin B2, carotene, sugar. It can be given both fresh and boiled. The content of beets in the diet is about 15%. |
| Pumpkin | It contains a lot of vitamins and microelements. The product is added in an amount not exceeding 15% of the total volume. |
Protein components provide the daily requirement for amino acids. Protein sources are also rich in vitamins and minerals. They can be of plant and animal origin. Amino acids are well absorbed by the body. Animal proteins are obtained from various types of flour:
- fish. This product makes up to 8% of the diet, but is not used in broiler feed so that the meat does not have a specific smell;
- bone. In terms of the amount of proteins, it is not inferior to cereals, and at the same time it is rich in fats (11%) and vitamins A and E. It is given to chickens from a month old;
- blood. The product is rich in essential amino acids, but in high concentrations it provokes indigestion.
Its share in the diet should not exceed 4%; - pen. This component is used as an available source of protein to balance the feed composition. It is added in small amounts (up to 2%).
Dairy products are also a source of well-digestible animal protein: cottage cheese or whey. Their inclusion in feed mixtures for laying hens increases the egg production and fertility of chickens.
Legumes are richest in vegetable proteins:
- soy in terms of percentage and qualitative composition of proteins and amino acids is practically not inferior to products of animal origin, it also contains vitamins and minerals;
- peas also provide protein requirements for poultry, although to a lesser extent; chickens do not eat it well because of the specific smell and taste, therefore, no more than 10% is introduced into the feed;
- soybean and sunflower meal and cake are an inexpensive, highly digestible source of amino acids. In compositions for adult chickens, their share is 15-17%, for chickens and young animals - 10%.
General feeding rules
| Each individual should consume approximately 15-30 g of food per day: how much depends on the breed, weight of the chicks, and the intensity of their development. In general, the amount of feed each time should be such that the young hens will eat it in 30 or 40 minutes. The remains must be removed from the feeders so as not to deteriorate, and the feeders themselves must be washed and dried. |
If the chicks do not eat the feed given to them often, then its rate should be reduced. If, on the contrary, the food is eaten quickly, then it is desirable to increase its volume.
Feed for chickens of various ages
| PC-2 | Designed for chicks under 7 weeks old. It is produced in the form of finely ground grains, designed for an insufficiently unformed digestive system, easily digestible, contains all the useful trace elements. |
|---|---|
| PC-3 | Balanced mix for young animals 8-20 weeks old. Promotes rapid growth and proper formation of the reproductive system. It is produced in the form of grains with medium-sized fractions. |
| PC-5 | Designed for broiler chickens from 2 weeks to 1 month of age. It consists of a complex of easily digestible components that stimulate a set of muscle mass. |
| PC-6 | It has similar characteristics, but is designed for broilers older than a month. |
All types of feed can be divided into three groups:
| carbohydrate | Protein | Vitamin |
|---|---|---|
Promote accelerated growth and muscle mass gain. Their composition is dominated by cereals and vegetables. Chickens digest foods high in carbohydrates well, which cause a slowdown in metabolism and rapid weight gain. Such feeds are designed for broilers and increase the average carcass weight. | Such compound feeds are developed mainly for laying hens. A large amount of protein increases the productivity of the bird, improves the palatability of the eggs, and makes the shell stronger. | Strengthen the immune system, help to survive the winter period. Usually produced in the form of concentrates, which enrich the main diet. |
According to the form of release, the compositions are of 2 types.
| Loose ones consist of fine-grained components. The disadvantage of such compositions is that they are worse absorbed. The chicken chooses tasty crumbs from the feed, and the less appetizing ingredients are thrown away. As a result, the bird receives less nutrients. In addition, a lot of dust remains in the feeder. However, it is impossible to completely abandon loose compositions. Chickens in the first weeks of life are not able to swallow and digest large granules, therefore they can peck only small grains. |
Expanded feed is produced by short-term heat treatment under high pressure. Nutrient mixtures are in the form of granules and contain liquid components in their composition. The advantages of expanded compositions include:
However, when heated, some of the vitamins are destroyed. |
For broilers, loose compound feed can be introduced into the diet from the first days of life, and for laying hens - from the second week. When using dry mixes, it is important to provide the hens with sufficient drinking water. Feeding frequency
The first time chickens are fed on the same day they are born. Then, until the age of 7 days, the chicks of meat breeds are fed 6-8 times a day, from the 2nd week of life - 6 times, from the 3rd - 4 times a day, by the age of one month, chickens are fed three times a day.
Chicks of egg breeds up to 1.5 weeks are fed 5-6 times a day, and by the month they are gradually transferred to 3 meals a day.
When choosing a mixture, it is recommended to give preference to complete formulations. However, if the breeder has enough of his own food, you can limit yourself to concentrated additives to enrich it. Such compositions are marked with the QC marking. Concentrates for meat and egg-bearing breeds solve different problems:
| for broilers | for laying hens |
|---|---|
|
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It is unacceptable to use concentrates as the main feed, since an excess of nutrients is no less harmful than their deficiency.
BVMB is introduced into the composition of the mash, taking into account the age of the chickens.
Feeding Features
| 1st day of life | Feeding of chickens of egg breeds begins immediately after they dry out. The first food for newborn chickens should be a hard-boiled egg. It is cut as small as possible so that the chicks can swallow small crumbs and roll it in semolina to prevent pieces from sticking to the paws and fluff. In the brooder where they are, they put a drinker with clean, boiled and cooled water. Newly hatched chicks are also fed boiled eggs under the brood hen. |
|---|---|
| 2nd day | On the 2nd day, the chicks are already given a mash of eggs and homemade low-fat fresh cottage cheese (the ratio of ingredients is 1 to 1). The formula for feeding day-old chicks should be fresh and fed every 3 hours. |
| 1 Week | From the 3rd day, chickens are fed with a more varied mixture of cottage cheese, boiled eggs, crumbly porridge from corn, oat or wheat chips (the share of cereals should be 65%). Finely chopped greens and boiled red carrots grated on a fine grater are added to them. You can give germinated grain or grass flour at the rate of 2-3 g per chicken per day. More than 5 g of such flour cannot be fed due to the high content of fiber in it. Separately, a little skimmed milk or yogurt is poured into the container; it is better not to add them to the mixers. Twice a week, a few crystals of potassium permanganate are added to the water so that it becomes slightly pink. Keep it in drinkers for no more than 0.5 hours, and then replace it with clean water. This protects chickens from stomach diseases. You can feed the chicks with special industrial compound feed for chickens from the first days of life. It is made up of products that are easily absorbed by the body of small chickens and fully satisfy all their needs. |
| 2-4 weeks | From 1.5 weeks of life, a little sunflower or soybean meal (3-4% of the total food volume), chalk or shells, bone meal (5-7% of the feed amount or 2-3 g per 1 chick). Particles of top dressing should not be more than 1-2 mm. Very fine gravel or sand washed in water is placed in a separate container. After 10 days, eggs are removed from the diet, but other components are introduced, for example, root crops (boiled potatoes, etc.). Salt, rice, rye, wheat bran (up to 10%), herbal flour (6-10%) are introduced into the menu of two-week-old chickens. From 3 weeks old, chicks gradually begin to accustom themselves to whole grains. |
| 1 month | At this age, the young are already quite strong, they can spend time walking, where they independently find greenery, seeds of various plants, worms and beetles. If the birds are in a closed aviary and cannot pluck the grass, then they need to be given it along with grain and vegetables. In general, the share of green grass in the diet of one-month-old young animals should be about 1/3 part, no less. Grain can be given both ground and whole: the birds are already able to peck it. It can be anything: wheat, barley, corn, oats, etc. At this age, legumes can also be fed: peas, chickpeas, small beans, etc. In addition to grain products, you can feed root crops, fresh or boiled, to monthly chickens, vegetables from the garden and their tops, kitchen waste of both plant and animal origin, bran, meal and cake, compound feed. From mineral additives - bone and fish meal, chalk or lime, shell rock, salt. In addition to food, young animals should always have clean water in drinking bowls and pebbles that the bird needs for normal digestion. |
Chickens of meat breeds differ from egg breeds in that they need more complete proteins and vitamins, so their diet should be tailored to this feature. Therefore, it is necessary to give more protein feed, such as legumes (grains and green mass), meat and bone and fish meal, fresh kitchen waste. It should also be borne in mind that they eat more, so they need to be fed more often, especially in the first days of life.
Farmer's councils
When changing nutrition, the sensitivity of chickens to changes in composition should be taken into account.
For this reason, birds should be transferred to a different diet gradually, over 3-5 days, daily adding new food to the usual food, gradually increasing its amount.
There should always be fresh water in the drinker, in which a little potassium permanganate is diluted - so much so that the liquid does not turn pink.
It is advisable to mix common salt (up to 5 g per 1 kg of the mixture) and ground egg shells into the feed.
The main disadvantage of self-prepared mixtures is the fragility of their storage. In contrast, prepared feed can be left in the feeder for as long as the chicks need to saturate.
In our company, you purchase safe, certified mixtures with high nutritional value. Products exceed the requirements of GOSTs in quality. At your request, it is possible to develop an individual recipe for specific chicken breeds.
The MEGAMIX company cooperates with a network of dealers in Moscow and regions. You can clarify the terms of the order and delivery by phone +7 (8442) 97-97-97 or on our website.
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09.11.2020
How to feed chickens with compound feed - compound feed for chickens
Complete and balanced nutrition is the key to the health of birds of any age. Compound feed for chickens is very important for the daily diet. It is allowed to feed both purchased and self-cooked food. However, it is extremely important that such food contains useful vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. Depending on the age of the chicks, the weight and composition of the daily portion differ. This factor will have to be taken into account if it is important for you to choose the most suitable compound feed for chickens. Read our article about what types of feed mixture exist.
What to feed in the first days of life
For newly hatched chicks, hard-boiled and crushed eggs (if the birds are not broilers) and egg powder (if broilers are being prepared) are usually added to the food.
It is possible to use millet. However, mash or crushed grain should not be given, because such products can cause digestive problems. Ready-made feed for chickens is usually included in the diet no earlier than the fifth day of life. The daily food intake can vary from 15 to 30 g per chick. Also at this time it is recommended to give cottage cheese. Food needs to be slightly moistened with whey. It is also allowed to add reverse, yogurt, greens, buttermilk, fodder yeast, crushed eggshells, grated carrots. As the bird's body weight increases, the amount of product given should also increase. For example, if the chick is only a week old, its weight is approximately 80 g, then it is enough for him to get 15 g per day. Compound feed for two-week-old chickens - 30-45 g per day (with a weight of 150 g). One month old birds can be switched from starter feed to grower pellets. Its daily rate should be about 100 g per individual. The composition of such food is very rich and includes all the necessary:
- minerals;
- vitamins;
- amino acids;
- squirrels.
Whey, meat and bone meal, lettuce and cabbage leaves, nettle, green onion, cake are already mixed into food. In addition to compound feed for chickens in granules, you can give millet steamed porridge (you need to pour grain into boiled water, turn off the fire on the stove and leave the food to infuse until it cools). However, the consistency should not be too hard or runny. Otherwise, birds will have digestive problems from such compound feed for chickens.
Advantages and disadvantages of compound feed
It is recommended to feed chickens from birth with feed specially designed for this purpose. However, this feeding option can have not only advantages, but also disadvantages. Let's talk about this in more detail. Benefits of feeding with compound feed for chickens:
- The growth of birds is accelerated.
- The level of vitality is increased.
- Strengthens the immune system, the ability to resist diseases.
- Feed mixture consumption is reduced.
- There is no need to additionally feed the bird, because the feed is balanced.
- Ensuring good nutrition thanks to the content of substances necessary for health.
Disadvantages of compound feed for chickens:
- Requires a constant supply of water.
- Foods high in wheat may impair digestion.
- High price of the product.
- Unnatural composition and improperly selected feed can impair the health of the chicks.
Popular brands of compound feed for chickens
The most popular at the moment are two feed options - PC-5 and PC-6 (PC-2 is also actively used, but its popularity is a little less than these two). The brands have been on the market for a long time and have earned respect from breeders around the world.
PC-5
This mixture can be used immediately after the birth of the chick. It has a high nutritional value, therefore it is primarily recommended for meat species.
It guarantees the rapid growth of bones and muscles, will contribute to the proper development of the joints. Sold in the form of crushed granules. The food is easily and quickly digested, it is considered easy to digest. It is worth saying that you can buy equipment for the production of compound feed in our company. Main ingredients of compound feed for chickens:
- cereals (make up about half of the mix, maize usually more, about 30%, and wheat 20%),
- meal,
- vegetable type oil,
- rapeseed cake,
- animal fat,
- gluten,
- beet molasses,
- baking soda,
- vitamins, chalk,
- salt,
- fishmeal,
- phosphate,
- starch,
- yeast.
From the first days, chicks are fed on the basis of 15-20 g per head. By the month, the dosage increases to 100-115 g. It should be noted that mixtures for young animals are dry food, they are given separately.
But it is allowed to mix them with fermented milk products, wet mixers or grass.
PK-6
Compound feed for chickens PK-6 was created specifically for rearing broiler hens, ducklings or broilers over five weeks old. Meat breeds, when eating such food, can gain weight every day up to 60 g. The composition includes:
- soybean meal,
- corn,
- limestone flour,
- wheat,
- sunflower meal and oil,
- fishmeal.
This feed for chickens also contains a vitamin-mineral complex and salt. There is more wheat in the mixture than corn, it makes up almost half of the product. And this is precisely the main difference from the PC-5. However, there is a drawback to the feed - the consumption is large. From week 5, 110 g of feed is consumed per individual, and by week 7 this figure rises to 165-180 g.
Compound feed for chickens “Start”
Sometimes called “Nulyovka”, because it is often used for chicks that have just been born.
The mixture is purchased for feeding individuals from the first day to the second week. The composition of different manufacturers differs only in the quantitative terms of the components. And the main ingredients are unchanged:
- corn,
- legumes and barley,
- minerals,
- wheat,
- vitamins.
Also, soda, bone or fish meal, limestone, salt, vegetable fat can be added to the composition. On the first day, this compound feed for chickens is given every two hours. Then the interval between feeding increases, but the main thing is that the chicks do not starve.
Compound feed "Growth" for chickens
It should also be given to young chickens for the normal development of the skeletal and muscular system. Add to food from 2 weeks, and finish feeding them somewhere in one month. The feed mixture is excellent for broilers, laying hens. The mixture does an excellent job of stimulating the growth of muscles, the correct skeleton, cartilage.
The main ingredients that make up the composition are corn, wheat, meat and bone or fish meal, vitamins, amino acids, vegetable oil, minerals, enzymes. The granules of this compound feed for chickens are larger than those of Start, however, two-week-old chicks can eat such food. The feed rate per individual is 120 g in the second week, by the month it is increased to 140 g.
Feed mixture "Finish"
Let's move on to the final stage of feeding the chicks (next is adult nutrition). This mixture should be given for two days from day 28 to day 35-40 of life. Contains:
- cereals (corn, wheat),
- soybean meal,
- sunflower cake,
- legumes,
- vegetable oil (usually sunflower),
- salt,
- minerals,
- chalk, vitamins.
Chicken feed pellets are large, but at the same time they are quite convenient for grown chickens. Approximately 140-170 g of food is consumed per individual every day.
The weight gain reaches 55 g.
Which compound feed is better in different periods of growing chickens?
Previously, it was detailed at what age what food is best for chicks, but here I would like to summarize the information. The following variants of compound feed for chickens are distinguished:
- starter - up to 14 days;
- growth - up to 30 days;
- finishing - older than a month.
At the same time, the main components of "Start" are: corn, wheat, barley, vitamins, minerals, peas, fishmeal, limestone, plant fat, phosphates, amino acids, antioxidants, soda. The grain itself is crushed to the state of small particles, and the remaining components can be added at the request of the manufacturer. If you need to transfer the offspring to feed from the starter type of feeding, the first few times the mixture should be further crushed. Finishing feed for chickens is characterized by an increased portion of the protein in the composition.
What is the right way to feed chickens?
We have figured out what types of feed for chicks exist, now it's time to move on to how to feed chicken feed. At the very beginning, it should be noted that feed mixtures are used in different cases. So, PC-5 or PC-6 are more suitable for broilers, because they help to grow a healthy and large chicken in a small amount of time. Compound feed for chickens "Start", "Growth" or "Finish" can be used for mixed species or egg breeds. When the chicks are just hatching, they need to be fed quite often, but in small portions. In this case, eight meals a day are considered ideal. For each individual, no more than 50 grams of feed will be required. The need for proteins, fats, carbohydrates and trace elements can be filled with this mixture:
- wheat and oats in equal amounts (in total 73% of the whole mixture),
- crushed corn,
- crushed soy or soy flour,
- milk powder,
- premix for both chicks and laying hens.
