Chickens not eating....

[countrymom22]

Okay, this may sound strange but have any of you had chickens that just stopped eating their layer pellets? They have been getting the same brand (Dumour) that I get at TSC for years. But I've noticed in the last 2 months that they first started to eat less of the pellets and now they won't eat them at all. At first I thought it was because of all the kitchen/garden scraps that they get, and then I thought maybe it was because I've been feeding them a little cracked corn about an hour before they roost at night. I have done both of those things for more than 30 years and never had chickens refuse to eat the pellets too.

These chickens, 12 hens and 1 roo, are all varying ages and breeds and they are all bright eyed and healthy and still laying through the winter. They still eat anything else I give them, but not the pellets. I also noticed that in this extremely cold weather, that the wild birds won't eat these pellets either. In years past, my pellet consumption would go up during the winter because the wild birds would eat some when there was snow on the ground. So this morning, I threw some pellets on the ground and a few birds flew down, looked around, and flew off!

So then I opened a new bag of pellets to feed the chickens this morning. When I go back out in about an hour I'll check to see if they have eaten any pellets, but I don't feel hopeful. Maybe I'll try another brand and see if that makes a difference.

Any thoughts? Has anyone else had this happen to them, and if so, what brands were you feeding? Thanks for the help! 

[gracielagata]

Mine haven't done that, but they do consume corn all day if I let them, and would probably replace their seed based feed with corn right now completely, given half a chance. They even refuse mealworms and choose the corn instead! I think they know they need warmth, not protein.

I wonder if something isn't wrong with the pellet, since they all decided to not eat it, including the wild birds. ? That is the only thing that makes sense, since they've never had an issue in the past....

[Mari-in-IN]

Not sure what to tell you - seems weird...  I'm assuming that you've checked for mold and smelled their ration to make sure it isn't perhaps "off"?

[Deleted]

Before you throw it out maybe try wetting it? Or you could even try fermenting - cover it in bucket with water - keep it covered - wait 3 days (I’m no expert so look it up!). My flock likes it moist but goes crazy when it’s sat longer. I don’t have pellets but it makes the percentage lost very small - the flakes & seeds, etc a bigger. No idea why chickens changed their appetite for the feed 🐓👩🏼‍🌾🤷🏼‍♀️

[countrymom22]

Thanks for the replies. I just came in from watering and even though I opened a new bag this morning, they still won't touch the pellets. I checked the old bag, no weird smells or mold. I store all my grain in an old feed box, nothing can get in and the box itself is inside a shed.

My chickens also prefer corn to pellets, I think most do, but I only feed corn late in the day, and even in the mornings the chickens won't touch the pellets.

I think I will try making it into a mash before I throw it out. Then I'll buy a different brand and see if I have the same problem. As long as they are all still healthy and laying, I guess it's not that big a deal. But I would like to know what's going on as I've had chickens for almost 40 years and never had this problem before!

Thanks for the help!

[horseyrider]

I'd be sticking my head in the bag and seeing if it smells musty, moldy, or rancid. If it smells sweet, then I'd taste it. (Yes, I sample my horses' food too. I know what it's supposed to taste like, and when they all go off feed, it's always because something's wrong with the feed.) If it just tastes corny or grainy, I'd probably try mixing it in a mash. But if that doesn't get them going, I wouldn't mess around with it for more than a day or so. I would buy a different brand, or at the least, a crumble rather than a pellet.

You might also google your particular feed and see if anyone else is reporting trouble with it. It happens....

ETA:  Oh!  I see you were posting when I was typing.  Great minds, eh? 

[wildhorseluvr]

I would remove all the feed and start fresh with a different brand, maybe even from a different store. Something is not right. My first thought is that they changed the formula to something different, maybe wth cheaper ingredients.  The fact that the wild birds won't touch it would send up some red flags for me.  

[Skandi]

I would try getting it wet, mine like a soaked feed, especially if it has sat around a few days and started to smell sour (fermenting) The only thing I ever remember wild birds not eating was some lentil burgers my mother made once, I refused them (as a young child) she tried them and threw them out in the snow for the birds, who also refused them!

[paquebot]

Another thing to do is clean the feeders. If the bottom material got wet at one time,could be something offensive that they smell.

Martin

[Maura]

Call Dumor and ask if they have changed the formula. If not, tell them your problem. It is possible that you have old bags. The pellets could even have mold that you can't smell but the birds can. When you call, have the batch number of the bags. If nothing else, I'm sure they would send you a coupon to replace the bags.

I always fed my birds whole grain. Oats, wheat, sunflower seeds, a little corn. They seemed to do well on it. They were free range, but during the winter it's all they had.

[here to stay]

Could it be something not directly related to the feed like water access? Maybe they need more water than they are getting to be able to eat the pellets? Or grit? Or whatever it is that chickens need to process the feed.

[themotherhen]

Do they have access to mud/dirt/small rocks?

[Maura]

The wild birds aren't eating it either.

[Weed]

countrymom22, I had almost the exact same problem here, although I brought it on myself -- by changing feeds. 12 hens and a roo also, they were only about 18 months old.

With a coupon in hand to save a few bucks, I decided to switch their feed from layena crumbles to layena pellets with oyster shell. (I figured the oyster shell would benefit them thru the winter months when I don't turn them loose to free range). I only buy 2 bags at a time and stow it in metal trash cans with lids to keep it fresh & secure from the critters

They were eating the new feed at a much slower rate at first but it didn't take long before they all but stopped. I've always supplemented their feed with table scraps also - and after a month's time had only ate half of one of the 40lb bags.  1st mistake was switching the feed type and 2nd was allowing it to go on that long.

I went back to my supplier with the 2nd (unopened) bag who happily switched it out for the crumbles. She even reimbursed me for the bag of oyster shell feed even though I insisted that it wasn't necessary as it was a bad decision on my part.

Several weeks later they still hadn't gained their appetites back for the crumbles & as the weather got colder, the egg production continued to steadily drop off. With production at just 2-3 eggs/week, I decided to cut my losses and took them to auction. No sense in feeding and watering them thru to he winter - so I'm starting a new flock in the spring.

In the future, I will be cutting back (or possibly even eliminating supplemental feed) and I'll never switch types/brands again!

In your case, I would suspect the feed was either old or a product ingredient change of some type by the manufacturer.

[countrymom22]

Just thought I'd give you all an update: So, I tried wetting the pellets, that weren't interested. I did call Dumor, said there was no change in formula, but I wasn't offered compensation, which was okay.

So with the terribly cold weather, I decided to leave the chickens locked in for two days. All they had access to was the pellets and a smaller than normal amount of corn with plenty of unfrozen fresh water. I lessened the amount of corn to see if they would eat the pellets, when pressed.

By the end of the second day, they had eaten the pellets, and when I refilled the feeder, they were eager for the pellets! So when the weather moderated enough that about half of the chickens were willing to venture out, I moved one feeder and one waterer back outside, leaving the other feeder and waterer inside for the chickens that refused to come out. The inside feeder was still emptied by night fall, with about half the pellets eaten from the outside feeder.

Since then, I have moved all feeding back outside, and the pellet problems seem to have stopped. Still don't know what caused it, unless they really were getting enough from the corn and kitchen scraps, plus they do free range, although this time of year I don't expect that adds to their diet much. Through out this whole time, which has now been about 6 weeks, they have continued to lay eggs all winter, with only half of the hens being under 3 years old. So, all in all, we've been pretty happy. It seems that the wild birds have decided that they will again eat the pellets, given the opportunity.

I have no idea why this actually happened. Maybe it was just a bunch of things, or my chickens have gotten spoiled. Not sure, but I'm happy it seems to be resolved. Thanks for all the tips, I really appreciated the help/insight.

[Deleted]

All’s well that ends well. And, bonus, now we all have more evidence that chicken behavior can be mystifying!

[Woodpecker]

Happy they are eating again. They must have been getting lots of scraps and that was enough? Glad they are all okay.

[Use Less]

I would take them at their word that there's something wrong with the bag of pellets, and toss it out. Chickens typically will eat almost anything. Be sure they have some grit they can get at, in case their gullets aren't processing efficiently.

[countrymom22]

Woodpecker, I would have thought that maybe they were getting enough from the scraps, except that there were probably a total of 14 or so days during that time when they didn't get any scraps, so I don't think that was it. But we'll never know!

Use Less, I did toss the first bag that they wouldn't eat, just to be safe. My chickens are free range so grit isn't necessary, but in different circumstances I'm sure that could have been a factor.

[Woodpecker]

countrymom22, honestly I'm so relieved they are alive! So, I guess it will be a mystery, why they weren't eating. Thank God they are now!

[Bear Foot Farm]

I have no idea why this actually happened.

I think you were overfeeding them with the corn and table scraps so they were being picky.
Had they not been getting enough food you'd have seen health problems.

[countrymom22]

That is what I would have thought, too. But I'm still feeding the same amount of corn and scraps and their pellet intake has returned to normal.