3 Essential Chicken Feeding Tips

Feeding your chicken doesn't have to be a hard task. However, as a new poultry farmer, you may not know exactly what you should and shouldn't feed your chicken. It's important that you give your chicken the right type and amount of food because their health depends on it. For this reason, here are some useful tips on how to feed your chicken the right way.

Choose the Right Type of Chicken Feed

You need to choose chicken feed based on the age and purpose of your chicken. Giving your chicken the wrong type of feed will be costly because the food will be serving the wrong purpose. Therefore, take note of the age of your chicken before or when buying the feed. Give your chicks starter and grower feed. This type of feed contains a significant percentage of protein that would be ideal for the growth of your chicks. You can stop the starter feed after a couple of weeks but continue with the grower feed. It also promotes growth but has slightly lower levels of protein compared to the starter feed.

As the chicks grow, you need to decide whether you will be keeping them for eggs or for meat. If you need them for the former, start feeding the hens with egg-laying feeds. They contain relatively high levels of protein (almost the same as growers feed) that will help the hens lay eggs regularly. On the other hand, if you are growing your chicken for meat, you will have to feed them with finisher feeds. The feeds have high levels of protein that will help fatten your chicken for butchering.

Go Easy on Supplements

Feeding your chicken with supplements isn't bad. However, do it moderately. That's because first, the commercial feed you give your chicken often contains all the necessary proteins, vitamins, and minerals your chicken needs. Excessive use of supplements can be detrimental to the health of your poultry. Some of the issues you may have to deal with include reduced egg production, protein deficiencies and feather-picking.

Consider Fermenting Your Chicken Feed

Fermenting chicken feed comes with plenty of benefits. For instance, it enhances the absorption of minerals and vitamins, increases the strength of the eggshells and weight of the eggs, enhances resistance to infections, and promotes healthy bacteria in your chicken's guts. However, keep in mind that your chicken may take time before getting used to the taste of the fermented food. For this reason, it's usually recommended that you introduce fermented food to chicks so they can get used to the taste growing up.

For more information and tips, contact a local stock feed company.