Hello,
I have 10 birds that are 11 -12 weeks old that won't forage. These are my first birds and they were all brooded from chicks. I have them penned up in a 100sf area of electronet fencing with a 35sf portable coop (which is too heavy but is a great workout to move around). I have had them in a single spot for over a week. I have watched the birds and they don't seem to forage very well. all the vegetation in that area is completely intact with very little soil disturbance. But they seem to eat plenty when of
chicken feed and kitchen scraps. Since they haven't had a mother hen to teach them to forage what is the best way for me to encourage this behavior? Do I remove there feed? If so, for how long? 4 of the birds are Rhode Island Reds, the other 6 are a black bird with white stripes that I picked up from the
local farm store. 1 of the black birds is a Rooster.
I also have 2 dozen Red Ranger Broilers that are only 2 weeks old so i'd like to get this figured out. I am anxious to get them working to build soil and reduce feed costs.
Forgive me if this has already been addressed. I searched and came up empty, perhaps i was using the wrong search terms.
Thank you,
Josh
1
