feeding amounts

[mull]

here i go again sorry for banging on about this but how much should i feed . or more importantly how much should they eat? layers put out in the morning . ihave a plastic jug on the side its marked in fluid ounces i fill layers to the 6 ounce mark ive been reducing down for a while now because lots left at end of the day. now 6 ounces between 4 birds dosent seam a lot to me ? i stand to be corrected.i allso put 3/4 ounces corn at about 4/5 in the after noon. theres still a lot left at bed time about 8 oclock. i leave till morning. 6/7 in the morning out they come feed a little then just scrat around till new stuff comes then igore that after a bit waiting for any treats that may come there way or corn at 4/5 eat a little leave most??. so how much dose 4 hens eat in a day????????? oh bye the way got a egg yesterday it was very nice for my breakfast this morning .

[Annie]

I should think hens are like humans to a degree and some will eat more than others .
The best way to assess whether they are getting enough,in my opinion, is by just looking at the girls and judging their condition. Laying hens will not be plump as they use their energies to make eggs not to put on fat ,like the table birds, so dont be looking for a lot of meat on their frames. If they free range at all they pick up no end of bits from all their scratching and that will satisfy them to a degree. I find some days mine eat more of the pellet than others but I just put this down to the rich picking in the garden. If you are concerned they are not getting the right amount of nutrition by not eating enough pellets then try making a mash by adding warm water , very few hens can resist this , mine get 3 picnic plates of bedtime mash and it is gobbled down in no time. I am sure you know already that treats are for an hour before bedtime only - you could try mixing a few meal worms through the mash for an extra special treat. So long as they seem happy ,healthy and are doing normal chicken activities my advice would be try not to worry too much about the actual quantities that each hen ought to eat.

[LisaB]

Hi

My girls have layers available all day, but I believe the standard hen should eat around 125g, about just over 4 ounces each I think.

I only feed corn in the cold winter months as it helps keep them warm. I prefer making a mash out of their pellets or scattering some dried mealworms. Treat wise I think the guide is they should be able to eat it all within 10 minutes, if not you're feeding too many (but I'm sure someone will correct me if that's not right )

[Benny&Co]

I just make sure our feeder is nice and full and available for the girls when they fancy a munch

[Hintza]

My birds have been unwell so they have been eating a lot less recently and I seem to feed half the birds in the neighbourhood too.

Stopped this by putting the food inside but because of the mycoplasma it is back outside.

Mine free range wherever they want (acres) so food consumption is a lot lower in the summer. For my 20 girls it ranges from 7 - 12 days for a 20kg bag.

They also get 200g of corn between them a day, in the late afternoon, this allows me to do a headcount and arrange a search part before bedtime.

[aceface]

i leave layers down all day and mine free range all day when im in it really differs day to day and i soon know if all the pellets have gone and theyre hungry they start flicking the shell and grit allover in dispute sometimes they stand at the kitchen window and look really sorry for themselves and do that walking up and down captured hen thing to make me feel guilty, works everytime too they are known as pampered hens ny my freinds etc nobody refuses the eggs though