The Improved Kienyeji Chicken breeds and other hybrids such as Kuroiler and Rainbow Rooster are actually meant to be reared in a free range environment or semi-intensive environment where they can scavenge for their own food. However, farmers generally give them the feed formulation such as the chick mash, growers mash, layers mash or finishers depending on the breeds in order to maximize on the production. Buying commercial food is however quite costly. You could easily see your feeding costs running to up to Ksh.12,000 per month for a flock of 200 birds if you do not manage your costs carefully.
One way to cut down on the costs and also vary the diet and prevent boredom in your birds is by supplementing their diets with various other feeds, particularly the household leftovers. There are some taboo foods that you should NEVER give your chickens such as garlic, onions or even potato peels. Those are out of bounds.
Also when you are supplementing the diet of your poultry, it is important that you do in moderation. Don’t overfeed them on food leftovers all of a sudden. Do it little by little and also gradually. It is important to keep in mind that the majority of the intake for your improved breeds should come from their foods such as layers mash in order to maximize on their production. These commercial feeds have been formulated in order to meet the all the dietary requirements of your chickens so that they can thrive well in your backyard and also lay more eggs or mature faster if you are rearing them for meat.
If you over supplement, you could not just compromise the health of your chickens but also decrease egg production. Do it but do it moderation. Feed in the morning and in the afternoon, let them scavenge in the chicken run up to about 6pm in the evening. Hang cabbages and other vegetable leftovers in the chicken runs in order to keep them busy when they are retiring in the evening or running away from the hot sunshine outside. Another way to save on feeding costs is by formulating your own feeds. For additional information on Kienyeji Feed Formulation, visit here.
Here is a List of Some of the Food Leftovers that your Chicken Can Eat:-
- Cooked Beans
- Broccoli
- Cabbages
- Carrots
- Tomatoes
- Pumpkins
- Sukuma Wiki
- Spinach
- Cauliflower
- Cooked potatoes-don’t give them peels
- Crushed maize, especially yellow maize
- Bananas
- Strawberries
- Apples
- Cooked rice
- Bread
- Grit
- Cheese
- Omena
- Ochong’a or small reddish fishes. They are smaller than omena
- Dried and crushed egg shells
Things to AVOID Giving Your Chickens
- Onions
- Avocado skin
- Sugar
- Salt
- Citrus
- Uncooked beans
- Raw potato skins