# Should I feed my free range chickens pellets?



## foghornz (Jan 18, 2015)

Hi all... I have 30 white leghorns in a 80 x 80 ft pen which I move about every 2 weeks. Heaps of fresh grass. I don't have pellets in a feeder to have when ever they want. Up until a couple of weeks ago I would just feed them pellets 2 or 3 times a day. I have now established an on going supply of leftover food from a supermarket. All sorts of Fruit & veges... You name it... loads of bread !! .... Too much infact, milk but not allot of meat. I am wondering if I should stop feeding pellets altogether ? They have crushed shell in the pen all the time. I am sure they have enough nutrition apart from meat, but they maybe getting enough protein from the vast array of other foods they are given....
Havnt studied which foods will replace meat proteins. I would like to cut down my feed bill ofcourse, but still give them a little commercial feed each time. They are just coming on the lay so i won't be able to see at this stage if new diet will affect egg production?
I try to avoid too much bread though I would like to give them more... Have mountains of it.!!!!
1 other question... When a hen starts laying should I expect an egg per day or do they take a wee while to get to that stage.....if so, how long roughly?
Dean from New Zealand.


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## Fiere (Feb 26, 2014)

Feeding them the way you are with the ration a few times a day is fine. 

Once the start laying you will not see an egg a day from each hen. They need to get their systems in order first and the first few eggs will be a bit sporadic and sometimes a bit funny looking. Once they get into lay then you can bank on an egg almost everyday from production leghorns for the first years lay period. The production will drop every year as the hen ages.


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## foghornz (Jan 18, 2015)

Thanks... I reread my post and would like to correct myself slightly. I am at the moment feeding them commercial pellets with all the other great food too, I mentioned cutting my feed bill down, I meant cutting out commercial feed completely. Do you think this is a good idea. My thoughts are that commercial feed is consistent therefore producing the right foods/nutrition everyday for egg production. Where as the food I get from supermarket varies day to day. But over a week I would think they eat better than most humans. I Give and will keep giving them milk everyday.


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## Fiere (Feb 26, 2014)

I feed mine considerably less during the summer months as free ranging and scraps make up such a huge portion of their diet. But I still give pellets, as like you say, they're consistent. The hens won't suffer if you feed them like you are without pellets, but they may not lay quite as well, just where the diet is variable.


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## 7chicks (Jun 29, 2012)

Just beware that bread does not digest well for birds including poultry. Has very little nutritional value for them and can get stuck.


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## chickenhen (Apr 22, 2015)

You can give them pellets but crumbles are Better for their digestion since they are already crumbled up.

It takes a little while to get into the egg laying process. They may lay a egg every day but most likely it won't be that comman. Sometimes you may even get 2 eggs from one hen on one day!


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