Patridge bantam chicken poorly foot?

[debbie26pet]

as the weather is not that great and my chickens aren't getting to free range as much as i want as the grass would be mud, i was told to mix some mash in with their pellets as a boredom buster as it takes them longer but also they have still got pellets,

does anyone mix do they eat the mash and leave the pellets? i have put a extra feeder ready to add in morning with some mash and pellets. will they leave my other feeder with is just pellets?

or just carry on with just pellets, they dont seem to be eating as much usually i have to fill there feeder up as they empty, but today only half been eaten,

still getting 5-6 eggs a day but got couple having amoult

[welsh sarah]

mine have pellets all the time but i do give them mash with bokashi every morning, they seem to love it more than pellets.

sarah

[Christian]

If you mix both, they might pick out the mash and leave the pellets. I would have thought that feeding one or the other only would be better. They will eat if they are hungry. Mine are fed on mash, but making such a mess they are going back onto pellets.

[Egluntyne]

I would'nt bother mixing them debbie, they will just reject the pellets.

 

You could make them a nice warm porridge with the mash now that the weather is cold.

 

Why not get them a **Peckablock** or give them a cabbage as a boredom buster.

[poachedegg]

I make a mash out of the pellets by adding water - then add some garlic, bokashi, eggshells and some vegetable.

[helenmb]

Mine love the mash, hate the pellets, so because they are in their run a lot I always use the mash. Apparently it takes 3 hours of feeding on mash to take in the same food value of 30 mins of pellet feeding which is why it helps with boredom. Plus it is easier to add in supplements I think to the mash. My girls particularly like it with Bokashi.

 

I also hang up cabbage or lettuces for them, with an old bulldog clip. You can often get some great bargins if you have a local market of greens at the end of the day and also later in the evenings at some supermarkets too. I got 3 great cabbages from Tesco the other day for 20p each.

 

My girls have a peckablok but ignor it - I have seem other threads that say this too. Might give it to the squirrels to stop them pinching the wild bird food.

[debbie26pet]

I would'nt bother mixing them debbie, they will just reject the pellets.

 

You could make them a nice warm porridge with the mash now that the weather is cold.

 

Why not get them a **Peckablock** or give them a cabbage as a boredom buster.

 

 

ive got them one, but dont seem as interested in them as the seed bells for birds but dont last as long

[eggypeggy]

I'm on mash only too, same reasons as above takes them much longer to eat, so keeps them busy. Ours free range all day but don't have grass, just shingle and a big dirt area. So not much else to eat except for the bugs and worms..

 

Why not fill up one feeder with mash and one with pellets and see what happens.. if they like the mash, finish off the pellets and swap to mash.

 

Definately hang something up if you can as above.. they love that! mine like carrots stuck through the bars of the run.