Meat Bird Feed

[MrsMitzy]

Our main goal for our homestead is to be as SS as possible. To that end I have found a recipe to make feed for our laying hens, but I cannot find a recipe for homemade feed for our meat birds. They will be out in a chicken tractor, moved 2x a day so they can eat grass and bugs, but obviously we will have to feed them as well. Does anyone have a homemade meat bird feed recipe? Or am I just dreaming and need to bite the bullet and buy the stuff at the store? TIA!!

 

[Fixit]

What you are basically wanting to do is step back in time to an era before commercial feeds. As such you need to step back in time to that era in your resources . Here's a link to poultry books from the 1850's thru the 1920's .

Library-Poultry

www.survivorlibrary.com

 

[tortoise]

I fed my chickens meat scraps. Especially neck roasts and similar cuts where you can't get all the meat off the bones. My chickens would pick them clean!

 

[farmerjan]

I have fed my meat birds the same 16% layer feed for several years. They are getting some added protein with being out and foraging. Last bunch I killed were older than I liked and dressed at 6-10 lbs.... real big and meaty. 4-6 months old. They grow a little slower but they develop better legs when not pushed so much. I feed free choice.
I will add some cracked corn or scratch feed to get them "moving" more too for the exercise.
Because I get my feed delivered bulk, 2-4 ton at a time, I only feed one ration except for baby chicks. And the turkeys get it too after they are in the 12-16 week range... They get a higher protein feed when they are younger. They also forage more so get more "bug protein"....

 

[baymule]

Cornish Cross we’re developed for fast growth and commercial feed. You can use alternate feeds, but that will slow down the growth and you’ll wind up feeding them longer, so not saving money. Bring them in, FEED them, 2 months or less, you are done.

I fermented the crumble after 3 weeks, using buttermilk as a starter. Leave a little in the bucket to start the next batch. Keep several buckets with lids, use one, refill, add water, stir and put at back of the line. It takes less feed and the meat tastes better. Feed Twice a day.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Don't forget eggs. Extra eggs can be scrambled or boiled and chopped and used to supplement their regular feed.

 

[tortoise]

Don't forget eggs. Extra eggs can be scrambled or boiled and chopped and used to supplement their regular feed.

Eggshells too. Bake or microwave to kill pathogens and to dry them, then crush or grind so they don't look like eggshells (to avoid teaching chickens to eat their eggs).

 

[Fixit]

Here's another book from one of my sources.

Poultry by Hugh Piper

Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by volunteers.

www.gutenberg.org

The food section covers slugs and bugs as well as grains . I noted it listed the grains bone to flesh building quality as well as thing like with whole oat soaking for a few hours made them more desirable to the birds and that once soaked had more of a flesh building nature .

 

[Chic Rustler]

i feed them 28% protein game bird feed. seems to really help growth, but its expensive compared to other stuff

 

[tortoise]

You could increase protein by adding mealworms. You can "grow your own" mealworms.