Do you have chickens in the garden?
You are right because it allows you to save a lot of money!
The only trick is that you have to feed them well...
...and that's not free! Far from it.
We can even say that our organic eggs from free-range hens are not cheap.
So how do we feed them properly without blowing our budget?
We buy organic food from a local farm.
A 20 kg bag of grain costs us around €20 and lasts around 3 months for 4 hens.
Initially, I bought the grains and calcium to mix into their diet.
But I soon realized there were simple tricks to saving on their food.
And this, without giving bad or toxic food to our laying hens.
So here are 6 simple tips to feed your chickens without breaking the bank . Watch:
On our kitchen counter, we have a small compost bucket that sits right between the sink and the trash can door.
Almost all food scraps go into this compost bin which is emptied once a day in the chicken coop.
You'd be amazed how quickly all these leftovers are liquidated by our hens... and therefore don't fill our bin.
Yes, chickens are omnivores, and it shows!;-)
Be careful, they don't eat everything either. They hate:tomatoes, potatoes, onions, citrus fruits, avocados, beans, too salty dishes, dry rice, chocolate, sweets and apple peels.
Another way to provide them with a varied diet and reduce your food bill is to let them go about their business in your yard.
And it works summer and winter. They will pick up insects and weeds, which is perfect for a balanced diet.
In addition, this "diet" makes them happier and healthier because they get some exercise.
It's still in their nature to run around, and if you can give them that possibility, even in winter, they will find what they need to eat.
Don't have a fenced yard to let them run around the garden? Or are your hens still too young for you to trust them?
Well, make them a mobile park. We made ours with fine wire mesh and kindling. We mainly use it in the summer.
Here is a practical tutorial to create a removable enclosure for your chickens.
Otherwise you can also buy ready-made but it is not given. Look here.
If your hens spend part of their time in your garden or yard, then they will peck at small pebbles and sand.
So there is no need to spend money on buying gravel for them to mix into their food.
Indeed, it is essential for them to ingest a few grains of sand because it helps their stomach to grind the hardest foods.
We didn't know this at first, and we mixed purchased grains of sand into their feed every day. Not anymore!
Yes, chickens can eat their own eggshells!
In fact, it gives them a dose of calcium extra which makes their eggshells harder.
Calcium is notably contained in the shells of oysters... which we do not eat every day given the price;-) However, they must peck at it regularly.
We have found a solution:all eggshells are crushed and put in our famous kitchen compost bucket.
It's fun to watch them fight over eggshells when we throw the bucket. This is definitely the best way to recycle eggshells!
If you know someone who works in a feed company or professional silo, then consider contacting that type of business.
Ask them if they have damaged seed bags.
Indeed, when the bags are damaged or punctured, they are no longer salable by stores. It is therefore a loss for the company.
Instead, they can sell it to you if they know you're interested.
Last year we collected the equivalent of a 20 kg bag to feed our chickens.
Sometimes the company charges us a small fee, and sometimes it's even free.
If 100% organic food is not essential for you, then consider contacting this type of company to save money.
We know several farmers in the area and every fall after the corn harvest we pay them a short visit to pick up a few buckets of cracked corn.
Indeed, on a farm, under the silos, grain bins and grain dryers, you will find small piles of cracked corn.
A little is lost each time the corn is transferred from one place to another.
This cracked corn is usually fed to farm animals, birds or other wild animals.
But the farmers in our area are nice enough to let us take that corn for free for our chickens, on condition that we do them a little favor when they need it.
We mix it with their feed (if we need to supplement one of their meals) or just scatter it around the lawn for them to search for.
There you go, you now know how to provide quality feed to your hens without breaking the bank :-)
And this, even in the middle of winter! Don't hesitate to sell your eggs to your neighbours.
For us, it's a good way to earn money to buy the bags of grain.
In addition to the savings we make, our hens have also allowed us to reduce our organic waste by more than 30%. Not bad, right?
