[miller15]

hi how much and of what should i give per bird?

[GrannieAnnie]

Hi Miller15, we give our girls layers pellets ad lib, which is nutritionally everything they need, but with a few treats some afternoons.

Plenty of greenstuff.  Cabbages or the outer leaves and other green veg.  Dandelions and chickweed are good for them.  A handful of mixed corn late in teh afternoon to help keep them warm through the night, and sometimes in the winter I'll make up a nice gooey mash of mainly potato peelings, boiled down til very soft, then mix in some porridge oats, or even some of they layers pellets.

They love it on a cold day!!!  The occasional bit of cooked rice or pasta, but not much and nothing with sugar or salt in it.

[miller15]

ok thanks... but is there a certain amount you should give to each bird?

[Casey76]

Pellets should be available freely all day as hens don't understand "meals"  They will graze all day taking a bit here, and a bit there (literature states that hens will eat, on average, 125g of commercial feed per day - but I never measure anything out, their feed is there all day in a big trough)

Do you keep your hens in a run, or do the free range in the garden?

If they are in the garden they will probably get enough green stuff and anything else would be a treat, but if you keep them in a run, I would proivde extra greens.

Mixed grain should be a treat in the late afternoon, no more than a couple of tablespoons per bird

[GrannieAnnie]

ok thanks... but is there a certain amount you should give to each bird?

That's what ad lib means, sorry, but yes, give it to them freely all day.  they will take what they want when they want, unlike dogs who scoff as much as they can in case they don't get fed the next day!!!