Re: Water Kefer as Chicken Food

[Guest guest]

I don't think there are many calories in water kefir. It

does reproduce pretty quickly, but it doesn't seem

like something that will keep chickens happy.

I have chickens too, and I've looked into something

cheaper. Leftover beef bits seem like the best bet.

I have kefired stuff like extra beef fat. There is a lot

of beef bits that get tossed out by the smaller

butcher shops ... whole barrels ... but the legalities

are such that it might be hard to get hold of. But

from our one beef a year, we get some 50 lbs of

good protein that is fine for chickens.

A better bet though would be to grow insects.

I've been thinking of growing mulberry trees and

growing silkworms. Seriously.

I already grow earthworms, and

those multiply very quickly and

basically eat any garbage you want to give them.

And chickens love earthworms.

There is probably some other really prolific

insect that can be grown in great quantity from

something local that grows near you. I raised woolly

bears one year. I only had the eggs from ONE moth,

but I must have had a thousand woolly bears by the

time they were bigger. We let them go, but it was an

interesting lesson. The birds must eat a whole lot of

babies, if that many caterpillars come from each egg

case!

You can also do something simpler: put

a piece of burlap or cardboard on the ground. Under

the burlap you can put some grains (any kind) and/or

some manure. The worms will gather under the cover,

and the grains will sprout. Then uncover and let the

chooks feed.

Anyway, you get my drift. Insects are the best food

for chickens, not corn. We just aren't used to raising

insects (yet).

On Tue, Oct 7, 2008 at 9:47 AM, Jim <eggs@...> wrote:

> As most of us know, the costs of animal feed continues to rise. I am

> exploring alternate forms of feed for my chickens.

>

> I have been growin milk kefer grains. I love how they reproduce.

> However, because of the cost of milk it isn't cost effective to use

> them as chicken feed.

>

> My question is: How prolific are Water Kefer grains? It would be great

> to grow feed from sugar water!

>

> Thanks,

> - Jim

>

> BTW: has anybody tried kefer as chicken feed?

>

>

> ------------------------------------

>

>

[Guest guest]

> A better bet though would be to grow insects.

> I've been thinking of growing mulberry trees and

> growing silkworms. Seriously.

Silkworms! And feed them to the chickens?! Why not try making silk

then ;-) Do you think it's easy to grow a lot of them?

Maarten

[Guest guest]

What about growing meal worms? Those are the worms you can by at

exorbitant prices at bird stores and maybe pet stores. I think they

can be grown fairly easily in bran. I looked into it once and but

never pursued it. Maybe I should think about it again. I think it

would be wonderful food for chickens.

Here's some info: http://www.nyworms.com/mealworms.htm

Ann

--- In nutrition , "

[Guest guest]

How are your chickens taken care of ?

How many do you feed?

What is the condition you house your chickens?

Are they accessing the ground freely or in the cage?

What type of chickens are they?

U.S. corns and (grains) are the lowest cost to feed them with calories.

PS. When I had chickens a way long ago, I would feed them with rice

bran,leaf cabbages,left over meal. And released in the backyard full

day I think they ate bugs,earthworms and veges bythemselves.

[Guest guest]

> The people who make silk often eat the pupa, which is

> inside the silk cocoon. Good source of protein. And yeah,

> I'd harvest the silk too! All you need is mulberry trees!

> Feeding the chickens mulberry berries seems like a good

> idea too. I have never tried growing mulberry though. I'd

> like to try it.

Two kilometres of silk each cocoon! The middle kilometre is the best

quality. I hear people prefer the black mulberries over the whites for

eating, though i haven't had the chance to try for myself yet. Silk

pupa sound interesting

Maarten

[Guest guest]

> I'd strongly suggest the Persian Mulberry.

I can agree they are great for eating! But not for silk worms, i

believe. Somehow they only like white mulberry...

Maarten

[Guest guest]

Geese also do a good job of fertilizing lawns. :>))

GB

--- In nutrition , "

[Guest guest]

Hi all, first time actually posting here.

Im Kelli, living in Cincinnati now, lived in TN. We

vermicompost our kitchen scraps, and when they get too wet they

usually get Black Soldier Flies (BSFs) in them.

We have 10 gallon plasticware bins outside that the food

scraps and shredded paper or leaves go in.

We would put our melon rinds in fruit-side down after eating,

and the BSF larvae would gravitate to it. we would then feed the

wriggling rinds to the chickens!

Im betting theres a better actual system for growing them

tho. if they hatch theyre big clumsy flies, that dont seem to bite.

good luck!

>

> What about growing meal worms? Those are the worms you can by at

> exorbitant prices at bird stores and maybe pet stores. I think they

> can be grown fairly easily in bran. I looked into it once and but

> never pursued it. Maybe I should think about it again. I think it

> would be wonderful food for chickens.

>

> Here's some info: http://www.nyworms.com/mealworms.htm

>

> Ann

>

>

>

> --- In nutrition , "

[Guest guest]

It is interesting to hear about your experience with BSF, Kelli. I am actually

starting a BSF " farm " and am waiting for my first pupae to hatch into flies.

You are correct that they don't fly very well. They don't bite because they

don't have mouths! Their single goal is to live a couple of days and lay 400

eggs.

One of the neat things is they thrive on fresh manure and especially like

chicken manure. The castings of the BSF make superb red composting worm

bedding/food. The BSF larva are voracious eaters. I'm wondering if it will work

to build a BSF house in the chicken coup and get a miniature eco system going...

I am waiting for my starter meal worm larvae to arrive. They are high in

calcium. The BSF larvae high in protein.

It has been great to hear other people's ideas concerning this. Here I thought I

was being creative in my thinking...

Thanks for everybody's thoughts! I enjoy and appreciate hearing them.

- Jim

He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his

mercy. -Titus 3

[Guest guest]

> Hm. I think it would take a LOT of egg shells! And the

> chickens would eat the egg shells, I think.

It does need a lot of egg shells. I " v tried this, and also coffee

grounds and rough sand. All helps a little, but not won't keep away

all slugs. Also, when sand or coffee grounds get wet, the defense get

less strong. I had a huge plague this year and lost nearly all my

herbs and vegetables to slugs. You could see seedlings being eaten day

by day, and after a few days nothing left. That's the best case; in

many cases nothing seemed to germinate at all.

> I've heard copper works, as in, a copper ring

> around the plant, and I'm guessing that would in fact

> work. I think though we are going to move the plants into a

> greenhouse eventually.

I did an experiment. I put a slug in a copper ring. It left there for

a few hours, but the next morning it was gone. Could also be a bird

who picked it.

I'm told ducks are very good eating slugs. If you have a lot of snails

& slugs and also some lawn or acorns, you may be able to raise them

without any additional food. Look for the easier types. (That's what

i've read.)

Maarten