Compound feed for chickens and broilers

Combined feed is a dry balanced mixture consisting of grains of different cultures, foods with a high content of protein, amino acids and protein, as well as various fats, minerals and vitamins. For each stage of growth, broiler feed is individually formulated so that the birds grow healthy and gain weight quickly. The dry mixture can be purchased ready-made or made by hand. The latter option is preferable, since then it is precisely known which ingredients are mixed, and there is no need to doubt their quality and origin.

Moreover, many manufacturers, instead of natural ingredients in finished feed, use synthetic analogs that mix poorly and settle at the bottom of the trough. In addition, making compound feed with your own hands is more profitable, it is enough to purchase grain and add vitamins and mineral supplements to it. Even in this case, the price will be lower than that of the finished combined mixture.

Feeding methods and norms, as well as the main composition of the compound feed

Two-stage and three-stage feeding are considered optimal feeding methods. In the first case, the chicks are fed with the starting mixture up to one month from the moment of their appearance. After that, they are gradually transferred to the finishing composition for gaining muscle mass. The three-step method consists of a pre-start feed mixture for broilers, used to strengthen the immune system and promote active growth. They feed them up to three weeks. The next two steps are the same as for the two-step feeding method.

It is not recommended to feed broilers for more than three months, since by this time they are already fully grown and gaining the maximum possible weight.

The composition of feed for broilers must contain the following components:

• feed wheat and corn;
• cake or meal;
• bone or fish meal;
• fat;
• a piece of chalk;
• salt.

The percentage of each ingredient will vary depending on the stage of growth of the chicks. The main thing is to correctly calculate the required amount of feed, since underfeeding or overfeeding causes deviations in the health and growth of broilers. From the table below, you can find out how much compound feed you need to give to one chicken, depending on its age.

In the first week after hatching, the chicks need to be fed 8 times a day. In the second week they feed 6 times, in the third 4 times, from the fourth and before slaughter 2 times a day. It can be dispensed as a dry mixture or a wet mash, but it is bred in such an amount that the bird can eat everything in one go. Due to prolonged downtime, the mash of mixed feed for broilers sours, and this can cause intestinal upset. Dilute half a liter of milk, whey or broth per 1 kg of dry mixture. The fiber content in any type of feed should be up to 4%, as it is not completely digested by the intestines of broilers. Therefore, you should not add a lot of barley, oats or grass flour.

To increase the nutritional value of the feed, it is recommended to yeast or germinate the grain. For 2 liters of water use 1 kg of the mixture and 10 g of yeast. Leave to infuse for 7-9 hours, stirring occasionally.

Combo Recipes

There are a lot of ways to prepare compound feed for broilers with your own hands, the main thing is that all the ingredients are of high quality and natural.As soon as the chicks hatch, they are fed with finely chopped boiled eggs, cottage cheese, millet, small cereals, as well as milk-based mash. The main thing is that the food is easily digestible. 3 days after the emergence of the chicks, finely chopped grass (dandelion, clover, thistle) can be added to the mash.

Compound feed for them should consist of the following components:

• corn - 50%;
• wheat - 16%;
• cake or meal - 14%;
• kefir - 12%;
• barley - 8%.

Starter Mix Recipe:

• corn - 48%;
• wheat - 13%;
• sunflower meal or cake - 19%;
• bone meal - 7%;
• fat - 1%;
• herbal flour - 3%;
• yeast - 5%.

Corn and meal will provide broilers with vitamins, grass meal with protein (you can use alfalfa instead), and bone meal or fish meal with protein. For a combined mixture to be high in energy, it must contain at least 40% of the grain, and there are two types.

Do-it-yourself recipe for finishing compound feed for broilers:

• corn - 45%;
• wheat - 13%;
• sunflower meal or cake - 17%;
• bone meal - 17%;
• fat - 3%;
• herbal flour, chalk - 1%;
• yeast - 5%.

When the bird reaches the last stage of fattening, it must be fed with a higher calorie mixture so that it gains maximum weight faster (2-2.5 kg).

Fresh and clean water at room temperature must always be present near the feeders.

Poultry food varies not only in composition but also in size. So, for example, two-day-old chicks cannot eat large granules, they simply will not swallow them. Moreover, their digestive system cannot cope with such a rough food. Therefore, it is necessary to select a combined mixture for each age of the bird separately.

A table with the size and structure of a do-it-yourself feed for broilers.

 

The best way of feeding broilers is considered to be a combined one, when a dry mixture and a wet mash are given alternately. The compound feed can be kept in the troughs all the time, and fed with a mash 2 times a day.

What compound feed is best for broilers and how much does it cost?

The formula for feeding is selected according to age. Pre-starter feed for broiler chickens is marked PK5-1. They feed them to a bird up to 14 days old. Its main component is crushed corn, it also contains barley, peas and feed wheat. All these ingredients contribute to the active formation of skeletal bones, and have a positive effect on the functioning of the intestines and stomachs of chicks. After it, broilers are slowly accustomed to starting compound feed labeled PK5-2, since they have a time of intensive growth. As soon as the bird reaches the age of one month, they are transferred to constant feeding until slaughter with the finishing compound feed PK6-1.

To find out which feed for broilers is best suited, you should carefully study the composition of the product. It should contain only natural ingredients. It is also better to purchase feed from large manufacturers with quality certificates. If you buy the products of a little-known company, then there is a chance that the bird will not receive enough vitamins, as a result, it may get sick.

As a starting compound feed for broilers with a price of 1350 rubles per 40 kg, the combined mixture BR-1 (Start) for chicks up to 14 days old has proven itself well. It uses corn and wheat as a basis, and also contains fishmeal, sunflower and soybean meal, salt, chalk, vitamin and mineral premix, amino acids and vegetable oil. For poultry aged 14 to 30 days, a combined PK-5 mixture is often purchased. It is also based on wheat and corn, but there are also wheat germ, meat and bone meal and yeast. The price of this compound feed for broilers starts from 1100 rubles per 40 kg.As a finishing feed, they use BR-3 (Finish) - 1300 rubles, or PC-6 costing 1000 rubles per bag.

Useful Tips

For quick growing broilers a combination mixture is required. Birds will grow much longer on regular grazing and may not gain their maximum weight until slaughter time. Do not feed broilers for more than three months, as this is unprofitable. In addition to the main feeding, it is imperative to use medications against the appearance of diseases, as well as to disinfect the pen. It is impossible that access to food was difficult, and there was a crush in the cage. With proper and rational feeding, monthly chicks should weigh from 500 to 700 grams, and two-month-old 2 kg.

If you feed the broiler only with compound feed, then after 40 days they reach a maximum weight of 2.5 kg, and they can be sent for slaughter. It has been noticed that the pellets are better absorbed by the poultry, therefore, if you plan to breed a large number of poultry, it is recommended to purchase a pellet mill.

Compound feed for broilers - video