Barley as feed????

[Anonymous]

I work on a farm and i aquired approx. 1 ton of barley. Can i have this crushed at the mill and feed it to my chickens and ducks, I heard somewhere that it is NOT ok for my horses, but im thinking of maybe mixing it in with the chicken/duck feed( which is poultry mash)??

 

[Davidd]

Hello, as long as it is only a part of their diet, yes, you can feed it to your hens- mixed in with the mash- you can also feed it to your horses- get it crushed or rolled at the mill- it's very good to put weight on horses-i don't know who told you it's not good for them- I used to feed it to my horses as l,ots of people did and still do, like i said it's especially good to put on condition.
regards, David

 

[Tim]

Barley is wasted on chickens as they lack the enzyme to digest it. It is added to commercial feed sometimes but they also add the missing enzyme (it's then called Barley Meal).

Waterfowl can handle and love Barley and can have it instead of wheat.

Personally, I would stick with the mash for your chickens and feed the barley under a little water for your ducks so the chickens don't get it.

I have no idea about horses I'm afraid.... chickens are my thing

 

[Davidd]

Hi, while i agree to a certain extent, if fed soaked, sprouted or malted they them can digest it easily if, as i said, mixed with meal it will do no harm and only good for your hens- and like i said it's very good for your horses.
regards, David

 

[Tim]

I'm not sure about feeding soaked / sprouted Barley and yes, mash is a complete feed anyway but I had read about Barley recently in one of Victroia Roberts publications. Also, the North Dacota State University website http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/ansci/swine/eb73w.htm says:

"Poultry, particularly growing chickens, are sensitive to the beta-glucans in barley. Beta-glucans form gels in the digestive tract of birds that are not broken down because of the lack of appropriate enzymes and the rapid rate of passage in poultry. Without addition of beta-glucanases to the feed, barley-based diets have been associated with reduced levels of available energy and with wet droppings, pasty vents, and wet litter.

However, adding beta-glucanases to diets fed to poultry can effectively eliminate the problems with wet, gummy droppings while increasing the availability of dietary energy and reducing the effective variation in energy content."

So personally, I would be cautious.

Feeding ducks with Barley is fine though, I have read about it being a suitable replacement for wheat as far as waterfowl are concerned.

Hope this helps,

Tim