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Asked on: 14-Jul-2010
Answered by: Wendy Morgan, Animal Nutritionist North Island
do you do an in between feed for growing chickens ??after they come off chick starter. I have been advised not to put growing pullets straight onto Hi lay products till they reach point of lay. I also wish to grow a couple of cockrels on for stud purposes and I want them on a grower type feed with less protein as I have been advised roosters dont need high protein found in Hi Lay products - it seems the high protein levels can cause low sperm count - and as none of my birds bred last year this may have been a factor
Hi Helen,
Thank you for your questions. For the growing pullets, you can mix Chick Starter with a product like Peck n Lay at a 50:50 ratio. This should allow the birds to maintain moderate weight gains as expected for their breed. They can then move on to straight Peck n Lay at point of lay. Please bear in mind that the Chick Starter contains a coccidiostat which can be transferred to the egg so if you are feeding this when the birds start to lay, these eggs should discarded for 5 to 7 days after moving to Peck n Lay. This blend of meals can also be used for the cockerels.