[Neelam]

When I got my first three girls they were happily eating their pellets, when I got my second three girls, both groups were happily eating their pellets. Since they became ONE flock they suddenly refused the pellets completely and preferred foraging and the late afternoon corn so I changed to layer mash which for three months they were happily eating but the past few days I noticed that they eat much less or hardly anything every other day of this mash. I guess there are more insects around for them as the temperatures at night are going up now but still, I wonder what, besides their late afternoon corn I can feed them to give them a healthy diet that doesn't go to waste. They look healthy to me and are fit, active as usual.
I haven't changed their brand or anything in their daily feeding routine, so have no clue what causes this behaviour.

Any suggestion for me?

Thanks!
Neelam

[New shoot]

I would drop the corn and leave them with either pellets or mash, plus whatever they are foraging.  They don't need the corn, whereas they should be having the nutrients in their layers diet.

If they are eating earthworms and slugs, you need to worm regularly.  If they aren't laying, their food consumption will be lower.  You might find that changes if they suddenly start laying, their interest in pellets and mash may well increase 

[grinling]

Pellets are less messy then mash and they can be picky over the mash.
My 5 are eating less and spend all day outside, they have stopped laying due to the cold weather.

[Beekissed]

When I got my first three girls they were happily eating their pellets, when I got my second three girls, both groups were happily eating their pellets. Since they became ONE flock they suddenly refused the pellets completely and preferred foraging and the late afternoon corn so I changed to layer mash which for three months they were happily eating but the past few days I noticed that they eat much less or hardly anything every other day of this mash. I guess there are more insects around for them as the temperatures at night are going up now but still, I wonder what, besides their late afternoon corn I can feed them to give them a healthy diet that doesn't go to waste. They look healthy to me and are fit, active as usual.
I haven't changed their brand or anything in their daily feeding routine, so have no clue what causes this behaviour.

Any suggestion for me?



Thanks!
Neelam

Sounds like a good thing to me...foraged foods are their more natural diet and are healthier for them.  I disagree with having to worm regularly if they free range and forage for food.  I've been free ranging off and on for almost 40 yrs and have never dewormed a flock, nor have I ever had a worm found in any bird that has been under my care.  Birds that are allowed to free range find natural methods of deworming themselves, the consumption of saw grass is one of these. 

I agree with not feeding the corn...if they have a layer ration available and foraged foods, they don't need corn at all.  I'd only put out as much of the mash that they will consume in one day's time and then no more.  Leaving feed out just attracts rodents and wastes feed. 

Chickens consume less or more feed according to their needs, the season and available forage.  I just adjust the amounts I feed accordingly.  As long as they are in good condition, healthy and alert, doing well on their ration, I wouldn't worry about their health. 

[New shoot]

I disagree with having to worm regularly if they free range and forage for food.  I've been free ranging off and on for almost 40 yrs and have never dewormed a flock, nor have I ever had a worm found in any bird that has been under my care.  Birds that are allowed to free range find natural methods of deworming themselves, the consumption of saw grass is one of these. 

It is a bit different for people over here Beekissed, as most of us only have a small garden for our hens to free range in.   As well as hens using this space, most gardens are visited by a large population of wild birds, as even if you don't feed them, your neighbours probably do. 

The combination leads to a build up of worm eggs in the soil very fast and so we recommend forum members do have a regular worming programme and check for feather and red mite, which is also a common problem over here.

The pictures you have posted of your set-up are fantastic and your hens look beautiful by the way.  I think we are all a little envious of the space you have 

[Beekissed]

Thank you for the compliment and the explanation.     I'm curious, though...is no one on the forum pursuing any all natural methods of flock keeping, or are they all giving meds as a matter of course, without exploring other methods or options? 

If they are all giving meds to their chickens, is that a law there in your country?  I'm still learning about the practices for poultry there and they seem to be vastly different than here in the US, so forgive me if I don't understand right away some of the information found here. 

[New shoot]

There are no laws here saying you must give meds to your chickens Beekissed and many chicken keepers do use other methods of worm control. 

I am in a large town and we have lots of wild garden birds and feral pigeons around, so I worm every 6 months with a product called Flubenvet.  In between mine get lots of garlic, which helps with natural worm control.

Joyfull, who is the other moderator on this board, has way more space than me and her birds free range a lot.  I believe she only worms once a year and uses garlic and apple cider vinegar as natural controls.  I'm sure she will be along at some point and can correct me if I have got this wrong 

[Sassy]

Thank you for the compliment and the explanation.     I'm curious, though...is no one on the forum pursuing any all natural methods of flock keeping, or are they all giving meds as a matter of course, without exploring other methods or options? 

If they are all giving meds to their chickens, is that a law there in your country?  I'm still learning about the practices for poultry there and they seem to be vastly different than here in the US, so forgive me if I don't understand right away some of the information found here.

As people often only post if they have a problem it may give rise to the view that we medicate a lot. But there are lots of keepers out there who have never medicated, do not have a problem so do not need to post.

[joyfull]

As new shoot has said I have more space for my birds than most on here and yes I do only worm once a year (I did at one time worm twice a year but decided this wasn't needed). I am lucky and never had any worm problems but the extra space does help.

[Beekissed]

I see now.  So, is it okay to advocate for an all natural approach even for those in confined spaces, such as preventative measures instead of curative?  We also have many keeping birds in small areas over here in the US but, as a nurse and understanding the overuse of meds and what it has done to our food supply and our general health, I never suggest that people medicate without exploring all other options first.  There are a few good solutions that can keep even small flocks in small areas less likely to develop a parasite infestation or disease. 

What we see here is that repeated use of the same med for livestock, as in scheduled dewormers~and for people, as in preventative antibiotic use~often breeds a resistant parasite or germ, resulting in the need to switch to a different or stronger med and then the vicious cycle continues.  Pretty soon we've developed very strong worms and germs but not strong animals or humans, so some people are actively promoting a more natural approach to disease and parasite control that will work out better for all concerned over the long run.

I'm kind of surprised, with all the rules they have about feed in this country, that this dosing of backyard flocks on a regular basis has not been addressed in their long term solution to improve the safety of the food supply.

 Over in this country they are starting to crack down on it by making these OTC drugs found in feed stores unavailable for purchase unless one has a prescription from a vet and usually that vet will want to do a fecal study or see the animal before prescribing a dewormer or antibiotic.  There's a lot of folks unhappy about that, as you can probably understand, but it does spur people on to explore other options for keeping a healthy flock...and there are options if one wants to take the time and effort to find them and implement them.   

[joyfull]

Our only DEFRA approved wormer is Flubenvet, you can buy organic preventative treatments but they do not work for Gapeworm (and often dont work for the other worms either).

[8doubles]

It is nice to see hens eating natural foodstuffs but the modern hen is more egg laying machine than natural bird !

I would keep them in the run for a few hours in the morning to make sure the get a good fill of layers food, in the evening before roost cut out the treats to make sure the go to roost with a full crop of layers food.

As i have said before thin shells or softies are bad news and can be fatal!

[Beekissed]

That sure narrows options, doesn't it?  I find that most organic, natural type concoctions don't work simply because they are best used with an organic, natural type animal husbandry/farming practice and are not very effective in animals that are not bred and raised for natural parasite and disease resistance. 

They are very mild and gentle and work excellently on the small parasite loads an animal that has been raised more naturally would carry but won't work much on animals that have already been bred from stock that have been weakened through med use~ or they themselves have been systematically given more harsh chemical dewormers~ that breed resistant parasites over time.  A drug resistant parasite is a pretty strong thing to kill.

Just as a parasite resistant animal is a pretty strong thing and doesn't often succumb to normal parasite loads.   

[grinling]

I have only wormed when hubby spotted one, but there are pheasants around here which carry worms, so I keep an eye out. This country also has histomas,which 1 person on the forum had the misfortune of getting. Histomas is prevalent in turkeys and the only treatment is continuous worming or no livestock, so buying hens from turkey and hen places is no good.

[Beekissed]

Do you mean Histomonas meleagridis?  If so....

No prescription drugs are available for this parasite as of today. Therefore, good management of the farm and sanitation are the only effective strategies to control the spread of infection.

Therefore, worming of chickens isn't going to do much for prevention of this.  Good management, on the other hand, in the form of controlling the balance of microbial life in their environment so that there is no imbalance that can encourage the overgrowth of these protozoa is about the only thing one can do unless they want to try and disinfect everywhere a chickens goes and that's pretty impossible. 

There are methods that can help encourage the growth of beneficial nematodes, bacteria and fungi in the chicken's habitat that will help hold in check the overgrowth and transmission of these more harmful protozoa.  One can also cull, breed, manage soils and even feed for resistance to this parasite.