Along with the attention towards organic and healthy eating, there are more and more people in our country who decide to create small domestic or family chicken coops, even in contexts that are not necessarily rural.
Raising chickens in your backyard, in addition to being a stimulating activity, will allow you to have real fresh eggs every day , certainly more natural than those you usually buy at the supermarket, to use both as the main ingredient of your recipes, and for the preparation of other preparations (desserts and homemade pasta).
If you are thinking of starting your own small chicken coop, perhaps in your garden, for the family's egg consumption or even if you have a larger flock, there are some things you absolutely need to know.
First of all, the most productive hens are laying hens , which derive their name from the ease and abundance with which they lay eggs.
Both for the health of the hens themselves and for the quality of the eggs you will get from them, you will have to provide the animals only with quality food .
It is therefore essential that you know how to choose laying hens feed that can satisfy all their nutritional needs .
In this article we will see:
- Laying hens: how many eggs do they produce?
- How to get beautiful, healthy and resistant eggs
- 3 Best Feeds for Laying Hens According to Millstore
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Proper nutrition for laying hens
Laying hens: how many eggs do they produce?
Each laying hen, starting from about six months of age, produces on average and at most one egg per day, which, in a year, is about 300 eggs.
There are some variables that negatively influence productivity :
- Temperature . When it is very cold or very hot all laying hens (although with differences between the various species) produce less
- The reduced hours of light. Typical of autumn-winter, they determine a decrease in egg laying (this explains, without justifying it, the lights always on in industrial farms)
- The moult . From the beginning of autumn and for about two months, you will see your hens losing feathers and plumage and their combs fading. This is normal. They are simply rebuilding their coat after the summer heat to prepare for the winter. The only problem is that, during this period, they will stop laying eggs because all their energy will be used up for the moult. In this particular phase, we recommend that you use an excellent specific feed for layers , rich in proteins.
- Age . The average lifespan of a laying hen is between 5 and 11 years, but in terms of productivity, you will get the most out of them in the first two years, while they will hardly lay eggs beyond the fifth year.
In short, if you are raising or intend to raise laying hens, remember that they are not egg-laying machines.
How to get beautiful, healthy and resistant eggs with a healthy diet
As we have anticipated, choosing the best products will be essential for the health of your laying hens and for the production of eggs both in terms of quantity and quality.
Consider that not providing the hens with the nutrients they need could even compromise laying or, in any case, cause harmful anomalies for the quality of the eggs.
It is therefore absolutely necessary to avoid the practice of using leftovers from your table , except as an addition, also taking into account that, as we will see later, some foods are truly harmful if not downright toxic for them.
As we all know, chickens spend their days scratching around in the yard . This practice, in addition to reducing stress, helps them to obtain a good part of their food : various herbs and plants (preferably wild) but also small insects, earthworms and worms from which they obtain an important protein intake.
Please note that, to ensure that your hens can carry out this very important practice in an optimal manner, you must provide them with ample and sufficient space which, according to Annex III of the Regulation (EC no. 889/2008) is at least 4 m2 of open space per hen to define organic farming.
For your part, you will have to supplement the food they provide themselves by choosing feed for laying hens that can provide all the nutrients they need.
What should the best feed for laying hens contain?
When choosing the best feed for your laying hens, keep in mind that these animals, being omnivores, need a variety of substances:
- Carbohydrates should constitute about 35% of their diet. Cereals , such as wheat, oats, barley, corn, rice or spelt, are therefore essential for their proper nutrition. Alternatively, you can choose from Millstore mixed grains.
- Proteins . Protein intake is essential and is equal to 16% of their diet . As we have already said, hens take in proteins by eating worms and insects, but it is also necessary that the feed for laying hens is rich in them.
- Vitamins present in grass and to be integrated with fresh vegetables
- Calcium is essential for the production of hard and resistant shells. Becco Rustico is a natural mixture of cereals that, thanks to the high integration of this element, is the ideal product to administer, together with specific feed for laying hens, to hens that have problems of fragility or alterations of the shell. Furthermore, thanks to the addition of oyster shells, it facilitates digestion.
Choosing a complete food that can guarantee all these nutrients is certainly more practical than preparing a plurality of different foods.
"Choppers": what are they and why are they essential for chickens?
The crushing elements are pebbles, sand, snail shells or shells and it is essential that they are present both in the pasture and in the feed.
This need is linked to the digestive system of chickens which, not having teeth, cannot break down food.
The food will then be swallowed whole. A first enzymatic digestive phase takes place in the crop, then passes through the glandular stomach and finally into the muscular one.
This is where the "shredding elements" come in to aid in the complete digestion and absorption of vitamins from herbs and vegetables .
When and how much to feed your layers?
The ideal times to feed your chickens are before and after grazing.
As regards the quantity of food (which may vary based on the type chosen), the indicative average daily requirement of a 2 kg laying hen is 130 g. of feed .
However, keep in mind that in winter and during the egg-laying period, this requirement increases.
With time and experience you will learn to feed the right amount of food inside the chicken coop so that the feed does not go overboard. This is because it could develop molds that are very dangerous, even carcinogenic, for the animals .
Additionally, leftover food could attract mice or other unwanted guests.
This is why we recommend that you store grains and feed in general in a cool, dry place and never give your chickens non-fresh fruit and vegetables.
Finally, remember to always keep plenty of fresh water available for your layers because hens are very thirsty (they drink up to 3 times more than the feed they ingest, which can become 5 times during the warmer months).
Foods that are harmful to laying hens
Some breeders tend to feed their chickens scraps from their own table. A practice that, as we have already said, is highly discouraged, especially when it comes to some foods that are absolutely harmful if not downright toxic for these animals.
- Raw dried beans are poisonous to chickens, potentially lethal
- Potatoes, aubergines and green tomatoes contain substances harmful to them
- Apple seeds, citrus fruits, onions, sugar and salt are dangerous because of the presence of elements that can cause even serious diseases.
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Bread . Many people, since the time of our grandparents, have regularly fed chickens the famous "pastone", that is, soaked bread. A habit as widespread as it is wrong: it makes hens fat and makes their feces soft.
So, if you really can't do without it, absolutely prefer crumbled stale bread, but no more than once a week. - Raw meat . Chickens are very fond of it, but avoid giving it to them because it can exacerbate their carnivorous side to the point of generating cannibalistic attacks. The same goes for sausages, which cause various diseases.
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Eggshells are an excellent source of calcium but never feed them alone as this may cause hens to develop a tendency to eat their own freshly laid eggs .
This is a very difficult problem to solve. If you want to give them eggshells, crush them and mix them with other food or boil the egg and then crumble it.
We reiterate that the best choice is to purchase specific products for laying hens.
3 Best Feeds for Laying Hens According to Millstore
We have looked at all the nutrients your chickens need to live healthy and to ensure you have beautiful, healthy eggs.
The best feed for laying hens must be able to provide all of these nutrients in addition to what the hens consume while grazing.
It is therefore essential to choose an organic product, made with quality raw materials and balanced . Therefore, no to feeds that are too energetic that would make them grow too quickly but weaker and no, at the same time, to feeds poor in nutrients that would make the animals more susceptible to diseases.
There are those who opt for do-it-yourself feed. If, on the other hand, you want to buy ready-made mixes that are practical and safe and of excellent quality, Millstore offers you a wide variety of choice .
In particular, these are the best feeds for laying hens in our opinion:
- Naturovo Pellet for Layers
- Naturovo Bio Flours for Layers
- Naturovo Bio Crumbled for Layers
Let's look at its features in detail.
Naturovo Pellet for Layers
Naturovo Pellet Ovaiole is a pelleted feed formulated with carefully selected raw materials with perfect shape and granulometry to facilitate correct ingestion without wasting food in the feeder.
Enriched with vitamins and minerals , it promotes the laying of a high number of eggs of above-average quality.
Feed your hens NaturOvo Pellet especially during the laying period, starting when they have reached 20-25% of laying.
Naturovo Bio Flour for Layers
Naturovo Bio Flour for Layers is a complete flour feed formulated using vegetal raw materials entirely from organic farming.
Highly palatable and easy to digest for your hens, it is ideal for both growing birds and producing pullets.
Thanks to its formulation rich in essential vitamins and minerals, it promotes the persistence of the laying period and will guarantee the production of organic eggs of excellent quality .
Naturovo Bio Crumbled for Layers
Naturovo Bio Crumbled for Layers has, in terms of composition and nutritional elements, the same characteristics as the flour formulation.
The consistency is different, coarser than the previous one. Choose according to your preferences and the tastes of your chickens.
Proper nutrition for laying hens
We have seen how, to raise strong and healthy laying hens capable of producing beautiful, quality eggs, it is essential that you provide your animals with a suitable grazing space rich in nutrients (insects, plants and shredding elements) where they can obtain food independently.
At the same time, you will have to pay extreme attention in choosing grains and feed for laying hens that can provide the right level of carbohydrates, proteins and calcium, avoiding, instead, giving the animals scraps from your table, if not in moderation, absolutely eliminating certain foods that would compromise their health.
If you are looking for the best feed for your laying hens or if you need information and advice on our products , contact us. Our team of experts will be at your disposal.
