Chicken feed for wild birds?

[loripo]

My daughter wants to know if they can use the Layers pelleted food that the chickens dont eat (it has to be fresh every day) to mix in with the seed etc that they are now giving to their wild birds. Tits, blackbirds,hedge sparrows she says visit. I have passed on all the advice I've gleaned from these pages re no netting on fat balls and using oats, so she is working on that. At the moment the leftover chicken food is mixed into the compost heap, which she is also not sure about. So advice please

[Stinky Bob]

I dont use the pellets for bird seed but I do notice the Robin pinching it from the feeder, may work if broken up. Not sure about putting it on the compost as it may attract rats (I know the feed that gamekeepers use for Patridges/Pheasants definately attracts rats)

[loripo]

Thanks - I'll tell her to try a little broken up and see what happens

[captaincarot]

Originally Posted by loripo

My daughter wants to know if they can use the Layers pelleted food that the chickens dont eat (it has to be fresh every day) to mix in with the seed etc that they are now giving to their wild birds. Tits, blackbirds,hedge sparrows she says visit. I have passed on all the advice I've gleaned from these pages re no netting on fat balls and using oats, so she is working on that. At the moment the leftover chicken food is mixed into the compost heap, which she is also not sure about. So advice please

does she realise an enterprising person could bag this and sell it to their local fishing tackle shop as groundbait

[loripo]

I've just phoned her and told her that

[Stinky Bob]

Just re-read your first post about pellets being fresh every day.

My pellets are put into an metal feeding station (with lid) and whats not eaten at the end of the day is locked up overnight and then topped up the next day, the only waste is what the chickens have knocked to the floor (and this is what the robins eat). Is your daughter mixing other food in with the pellets and thats why it is being composted! Nt saying its wrong or my way is right - just never heard of anyone doing that.

[Picidae]

Originally Posted by loripo

My daughter wants to know if they can use the Layers pelleted food that the chickens dont eat (it has to be fresh every day) to mix in with the seed etc that they are now giving to their wild birds.

Personally I'd be very wary of 're-using' any poultry food for wild birds if it has had any contact with domestic poultry - especially if it's been on the ground and more than likely has had contact with fecal matter or saliva however miniscule. There's a real risk in passing disease on to wild bird populations that might have less resistance and are easy vectors. In particular H5N1. (avian flu)

I'd recommend sweeping up any left over pellets and discarding them. I'd also recommend, deterring wild birds from feeding in close vicinity to chickens/domestic fowl and keeping cages/runs as clean as possible. If there's that much left over, perhaps less feed more frequently might solve the problem?

Layers pellets get wet very easily and disintegrate - mixing it in the seed could well make the wild bird seed turn mouldy very quickly in this weather producing toxins that can be fatal to wild birds.