Preparing Your Own Poultry Feed

The poultry producers who want to expect a greater self-sufficiency always want to grow or at least add their own Poultry Feed. This thing has certainly many benefits.

For example, if you can grow everything your birds’ eating, you don’t require buying feed at all for your poultry birds. Besides, if you add the feed from bulk ingredients, at least you will be able to learn the composition of the feed.

This is a good sign for farmers who always try to reject for instance soy or corn and use non-GMO versions of these grains.

Actually, the question is what should you mix in your poultry feed? In this article, I would like to answer the question in below-

What plants should put in Your DIY Poultry Feed

You have to think which plants would be appropriate for your poultry birds. You have to think of the proportions that should be mixed. You have to seek for different poultry feed recipes in online. You have to reveal your geographical region whether the plants inexpensive or expensive and the availability of the plants. You can also study the ingredients in commercial poultry feed for taking an idea of percentages for your feeding.

Be Aware of the Growth of the Birds

You have to aware of the growth of your birds. You have to make a balance between all the macronutrients (fats, carbohydrates, and protein) and micronutrients (vitamins and enzymes).  In fact, you have to go in some trial and error to fulfill your aim.

I would suggest you some of the ingredients to consider putting into your chicken feed. The ingredients are as follows-

Principal Feed

You can provide the principal feed such as alfalfa meal (high protein, good for winter), corn (the mainstay for chickens, store whole), field peas (for protein, to avoid soybean use); wheat and Oats and/or barley (less than 15 percent of total diet together)

The Ingredients which are to Mix

You have to mix aragonite or feeding limestone (for calcium, not absolutely necessary), Oyster shell (calcium, free feed), Grit, Salt and Probiotic (or feed them fermented dairy foods like kefir or yogurt, or fermented vegetables like sauerkraut). Besides, you can add Crab meal (small amounts provide protein and minerals), Flaxseed (omega-3, feed whole to avoid rancidity), Broad-spectrum mineral supplement, Kelp (a mineral source); Fish meal (helps boost protein and omega-3s) and Cultured yeast (B vitamins, minerals, and digestive enzymes)

Read more: 9 Lucrative Suggestions for Starting Your Own Poultry Farm at Home

 Necessary Equipment

For making your own feed for a handful of birds, you will need a commercial, heavy-duty feed or flour mill.  By this flour mill, you can grind the grains you buy for your birds.

You have to think of the storage for the bags of grains you purchase. You have to make a partition in the bin for each of your grains and a lid on the top one. Moreover, you can make a sliding gate at the lower part of the bin to distribute the grain, you can normally replace the particles. You have to clean the bins completely once or twice a year for preventing pests’ infestations.

Raising Birds on Pasture

You can raise poultry birds on pasture. It will reduce the ample amount of your chicken feed. It is a natural diet for chicken. If they can have enough fresh pasture, they will be self-regulated. It will be easy for the chickens to get enough insects, bugs, weeds, grasses, and seeds.

Tips for Poultry Equipment – The Ultimate Guide to Start Poultry Farm

However, if you stay in a cold place and the grass starts decreasing, you have to provide them ample amount of feed during the winter.

In summing up, it can be said that one should follow these tips to make his own chickens’ feed with is hand perfectly.