For people who are getting started with raising chickens one of the main issues is the right chicken feeding proportions, the heating of some of the feeds, the kind and the quality of the feed. Another worry considered seriously is the chicken actually starving because the feeding failed in one way or the other.
No. In fact it is not. Chickens may be very low maintenance birds but they have survived longer than us and their population is several hundred folds over ours. True they are prone to diseases and pests but their population is a testament that chickens are survivors. More so with hands that care.
Chickens will eat just about anything. They will scratch for worms, they are happy with people leftovers, they love pellets, seeds and vegetables, peels, bugs and slugs. They are just as happy eating bread while pecking at a cockroach, and when something is not right with them, they will eat grass and even pebbles. They are most content when they range around for food and they will know what to eat and what not to every time. On the other hand, people could prepare the fanciest feed preparation for them but if they do not want it, they will avoid it.
So once in a while, if the size is manageable, let the chickens roam around, with supervision of course. Because if chickens are caged their diet is only as varied as those that are fed to them.
While the chickens are in their pens, there are two types of feeds. The first and most important is the corn mixed with other seeds. The second is the pellets. There are three kinds of pellet feeds. The layers mash, the crumbled pellet and the pellets. These variations typically have similar composition. The different names are only to identify the grade of the milling. Layers mash for example is crushed to almost powdery consistency to make it easier for chicks to peck and digest.
The crumbles are milled to rough consistency and are ideal for young chickens and the pellets for the full grown. Chickens could get by very well with one measure of mixed corn with one measure of pellets. If you can throw in other food, they will pretty much eat that too and if they do, there is no cause for worry.
Chickens eat grit too. They need grit to aid their digestion. If you do not provide them that, they would be pecking pebbles. If you want that prevented, you could purchase that at farm supplier but you could very well make grit yourself. To do that, roast eggshells in your oven until they are brown, pound it (not too powdery), and mix it with their meal. One of the few things that you do not have to feed chickens is preparing grit from oyster shells. Oyster shells, even when prepared in similar fashion to those of the eggshells will always have rugged and sharp edges.
Chicken feeding is never complicated. Simple steps like this could provide eggs for the table or for hatching. You will know if something is wrong when eggs are getting scarce but then you would easily find a way to correct whatever the cause may be.
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