[RICH_Chicken]

Hello all,

Just got some new pol they look great and settled in nice, just a question with regards to feeding corn how much and when? They seem to love it, I'm worried I might be feeding them too much? Only 1 has started laying can too much corn stop them laying? Any advice

Cheers

[ANHBUC]

Let them fill up on their pellets during the day so they get a ballanced diet.  Any corn or other treats are best given late afternoon and in very small amounts.   

[yorky]

I give mine 1oz per bird scattered in the run as a scratch feed. They get this in the early evening during summer and late afternoon in the winter.

[ehs284]

If you have free ranging birds, it is useful to give them a small amount in the morning to give you time to check them out before opening the pen.

[themagicaltoad1]

Mine get 3 or 4 handfuls every evening thrown in the run among the bark chippings. It's the only way I can get them in from the garden before it gets too dark to see what I'm doing!

[compostqueen]

Some folks make the mistake of feeding corn to their hens as their main diet instead of LAYER PELLETS OR LAYERS MASH which they should be fed. Think of corn as BUNS and feed sparingly

[GrannieAnnie]

Treats like corn can make them fat, so keep it to a minimum and they may start laying for you!

Are you feeding them their layers pellets or mash ad lib?  Chickens are browsers and will come and go to their feed throughout the day.

Some people make the mistake of only feeding them once or twice a day then removing the food until next time.

[Casey76]

Whether or not your chickens free range thier main diet should be layers pellets or mash.

Treats (including corn) should be limited to 5% of your chickens diet, and this equates to approximately 1 tablespoon.

Hybrid layers, especially production reds, should be fairly lean, weighing between 1.25 and 1.5kg only.  At this weight their keel (breast) bone will be fairly evident... if its not your hens are fat.  Fat hens can have problems laying, and suffer more with prolapses etc than lean hens.

[8doubles]

As mentioned before 1oz per bird scattered before they go to roost , it lets you have a last check on them and gives them some high calorie fuel to see them through a cold winters night.

[Sassy]

Agree with all of the above. Would also point out that being pol some may not start to lay until the new year. You may be lucky but they are all different even when they are from the same hatch. Whatever, the eggs are worth waiting for