# Can you feed raw chicken to pigs?



## Looking4ewes (Apr 30, 2006)

I purchased chicken leg quarters to feed my dogs at $.45/lb. I purchased complete pig grower from the feed store at $1.40 a pound. Got me thinking......

Wendy


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## Farmerga (May 6, 2010)

I wouldn't feed raw chicken to pigs. $1.40/lb pig feed? That is a total rip off. I feel bad about the 16 cents a pound feed that I have to buy.


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## Lazy J (Jan 2, 2008)

Looking4ewes said:


> I purchased chicken leg quarters to feed my dogs at $.45/lb. I purchased complete pig grower from the feed store at $1.40 a pound. Got me thinking......
> 
> Wendy


You are paying $2,800/per ton for a grower feed?!?!?!?

WOW

The most expeinsive nursery feed I sell is only in the $1500/ton range and it has many specialty ingredients.

If you are truly paying $1.40/lb you are being taken advantage of.

Jim


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## mekasmom (Jan 19, 2010)

Pigs could easily eat raw chicken. You want something else with some carbs too, so they grow faster.


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## HeritagePigs (Aug 11, 2009)

I pay 13 cents per pound for 16% complete sow feed.

If you feed them nothing but chicken they will have problems. Pigs are not dogs.


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## Rogo (Jan 1, 2006)

Well, if you're gonna feed raw chicken, you better be feeding the proper amount of food grade diatomaceous earth (DE) daily to prevent salmonella, who knows what else, plus death.

Now if you cook the chicken to its proper temperature, that's a different story, although many don't feed meat to their pigs as a steady menu item.

Knowing how store bought meat is fed/tended, I don't want it in my system even when it's cooked.

The purpose of raising your own meat is not to use the critters as a garbage disposal, but to improve what goes into your body.

But this is just my opinion.


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

Are you sure you're not paying $0.14 per lb for grower? I'm in the central Michigan area and I can give you a list of many, many stores that sell pig feed for far less than $70.00 per 50 lb bag.  

Do the math again and I think you'll be pleased with the results.


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

I sure hope you made a misprint, that would be way to much for feed. Personaly I don`t feed my pigs meat, I don`t believe in feeding them meat or meat by products. I know the ole timers use to feed hogs lots of meat scraps. But that is also how we got Mad cow, by feeding cattle meat scraps, brain and spinal column. My opinion, for what it`s worth. >Thanks Marc


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

That is very expensive pig feed. Ouch. Even then I personally would not feed chicken to my pigs. We free range our hens in the fields. Their job is to eat insects, break up manure patties, manage pests and smooth the soil. I would rather the pigs do not think of the chickens as food. Right now our pigs ignore the chickens, ducks and geese and I want to keep it that way. Feeding chickens to the pigs could likely train the pigs that chickens are yum-yums.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
Read about our on-farm butcher shop project:
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa


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## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

In my personal experience pigs love chicken! Although my 4 much prefer their chicken on the hoof. My pigs were in a stall beside my young 3 mth old pullets. One evening I went out to chores and I was missing 12 pullets. Upon inspection we found that the pigs had taken the little know hole in 1 board and made it big enough to pull a chicken through.

A few days ago when the pigs were going in for the night, the silkie rooster was in their stall. If the door had been shut he would have been desert for the pigs, they wasted no time trying to eat him.

Although I personally do not feed chicken to the pigs, it won't hurt them as a treat but not as their sole food.


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## Rogo (Jan 1, 2006)

All my critters roam free so no one has their own personal territory. It's probably why the chickens can nap on top of the pigs that are laying down and not get eaten.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

we feed our pigs everything except pork. they are vultures on 4 legs. now we dont feed soy, and we do everything we can to avoid feeding chemical anything, but they get all garden scraps, all kitchen scraps, orchard scraps, food scraps from the local schools (all local food), and anything that dies, chicken, bunny, cow, etc... they love meat, raw cooked, whatever.

balanced diet.

and our chickens free range, they share the pigs trough, and we have never lost a live chicken to the pigs. they ignore the live chickens, only eat the dead ones.


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## HeritagePigs (Aug 11, 2009)

Be careful about "food scraps from the local schools (all local food)". If you selling pork or feeder pigs, that is illegal pretty much everywhere. For good reason.


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

springvalley said:


> I sure hope you made a misprint, that would be way to much for feed. Personaly I don`t feed my pigs meat, I don`t believe in feeding them meat or meat by products. I know the ole timers use to feed hogs lots of meat scraps. But that is also how we got Mad cow, by feeding cattle meat scraps, brain and spinal column. My opinion, for what it`s worth. >Thanks Marc


BIG difference between feeding beef products to cattle and feeding other meat sources to pigs. For one thing, cattle are herbivorous only. They were not created to eat meat at all, and they were being feed meat from their own species. 

Hogs are omnivorous, and will pretty much eat anything they can catch if they want to. I would probably would not want to feed raw slaughtered meat to hogs. I'd definitely want to cook it first, but hogs can (and do, if given the chance) eat meat with no problem.



HeritagePigs said:


> Be careful about "food scraps from the local schools (all local food)". If you selling pork or feeder pigs, that is illegal pretty much everywhere. For good reason.


Not if it's cooked first. You have to have a place set up according to regulations, and it has to be inspected by the DOA on a regular basis. Almost all institutions (schools, jails, etc.) have a "swill man" that comes around and picks up the waste food from the kitchen. He then cooks it and feeds it to his hogs.


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## Looking4ewes (Apr 30, 2006)

Interesting responses. A 50 lb bag of pig grower at the feed store goes for $7-8. TSC was asking $11 per 50 lb bag! Yes, I'm probably getting ripped off, but what are my options for feeding out only 5 pigs? I don't have a gravity wagon but could muster up some 55 gallon drums for grain storage. I appreciate your replies.

So far I've been feeding pig grower, kitchen scraps (not garbage), load of peaches, and the occasional dead broiler chick. I plan to supplement with surplus milk once my Jersey freshens (2 weeks overdue). The pigs are on pasture but don't appear to graze much. They prefer to make potholes instead. In response, I've moved them from my good pasture into an poorer area.

I must admit unfamiliarity of the economics of grain buying. The pigs and the chickens are my first venture into grain eating animals. The sheep and cows are on grass. The pigs and chickens are eating a hole in my wallet.

Cheers,

Wendy


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## FarmerRob (May 25, 2009)

$7 divided by 50 lbs. is $0.14 per pound.
$8 divided by 50 lbs. is $0.16 per pound.
$11 divided by 50 lbs. is $0.22 per pound.
Even your worse case scenario of is no where close to $1.40 per pound.
$70.00 for a 50 pound bag is what you would have to pay if it were $1.40 per pound.


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

Hey tyusclan, I know the differance between hogs and cattle, I was just stating that we as humans try feeding things to animals in a complete feed that they normaly would not eat. That is why I mentioned the mad cow in cattle from feeding meat scraps to cattle. And it was my personal opinion that I don`t feed meat to my hogs. As Highlands said he would rather not feed his pigs chicken, as he free ranges chickens and does not want them to think of them as a walking meal. Anyway, still my opinion that I don`t feed my pigs meat. >Thanks Marc


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

Looking4ewes said:


> Interesting responses. A 50 lb bag of pig grower at the feed store goes for $7-8. TSC was asking $11 per 50 lb bag! Yes, I'm probably getting ripped off,


You're not getting ripped off. Like I said above, do the math again. At $7-8 per 50 lbs you're paying $0.14-$0.16 per lb, not $1.40.  



> but what are my options for feeding out only 5 pigs?


If you're feeding primarily grain you can absolutely buy in bulk for 5 pigs. 



> I don't have a gravity wagon but could muster up some 55 gallon drums for grain storage. I appreciate your replies.


You don't need a wagon, most mills in the area have a 300-500 lb minimum order. And they will bag it for you. 

That said, buying in bulk at or around the minimum order you'll save a few cents per lb at best so it may or may not be worth it for you to do that. Keep in mind there's also gas savings, labor savings, etc with buying in bulk as well though. Call the mill you use and see what their prices are for bulk purchases. 



> So far I've been feeding pig grower, kitchen scraps (not garbage), load of peaches, and the occasional dead broiler chick. I plan to supplement with surplus milk once my Jersey freshens (2 weeks overdue). The pigs are on pasture but don't appear to graze much. They prefer to make potholes instead. In response, I've moved them from my good pasture into an poorer area.


Are you free-feeding the grain? With the amount of supplementation, regardless of the grain setup, it sounds like they're likely being fed to appetite with "the good stuff" and are not motivated to graze. Try limit feeding them and see if they forage a bit more. Given the option hogs will eat to about 3% of their body weight daily -- give or take for the individual hog and its circumstance, of course -- feed to 80-90% of that or about 2.5% of body weight and see if that helps. 

Of course not all hogs are great grazers/foragers either. It pays to get your feeders from a farm that raises them the way you want to as they will have learned how to live that way from the get-go. 



> I must admit unfamiliarity of the economics of grain buying. The pigs and the chickens are my first venture into grain eating animals. The sheep and cows are on grass. The pigs and chickens are eating a hole in my wallet.


This is why it's a good idea to start small. Less sticker shock that way. :teehee: Are you going to be selling the pork from a couple of these hogs? Keep in mind that'll help offset your price.


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## Arkyrick (Feb 17, 2009)

Here in Arkansas we can get 16% grower feed for about $9.50 for 50 lbs and 15% grower for about $7.50 for 50 lbs we only have 5 pigs as well, you should check for a local feed store or coop for your feed they will be happy to sell to you and will be a bit less. Just Google feed stors or coops for locations


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

springvalley said:


> Hey tyusclan, I know the differance between hogs and cattle, I was just stating that we as humans try feeding things to animals in a complete feed that they normaly would not eat. That is why I mentioned the mad cow in cattle from feeding meat scraps to cattle. And it was my personal opinion that I don`t feed meat to my hogs. As Highlands said he would rather not feed his pigs chicken, as he free ranges chickens and does not want them to think of them as a walking meal. Anyway, still my opinion that I don`t feed my pigs meat. >Thanks Marc


You certainly have a right to feed your pigs any way you wish. I would never suggest otherwise. 

It was just that you said you would never feed meat to your pigs and mentioned cattle getting mad cow that way in the same sentence. I was simply pointing out that the two have nothing to do with each other. Hogs will readily eat meat, and if given the chance, will catch, kill, and eat small animals.

If you choose not to feed meat to your pigs that's fine, but don't use cattle getting mad cow as the reason.


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## HeritagePigs (Aug 11, 2009)

All of our pigs live on pasture. I don't feed them until sunset. This seems to make them graze more than feeding at any other time. And I guess this makes sense. If I feed them in the morning they won't get hungry for awhile. If they wake up hungry and pasture is all they can get, well, that's what they eat.

I believe that this method helps keep my feed cost down.


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## Ed Norman (Jun 8, 2002)

HeritagePigs said:


> All of our pigs live on pasture. I don't feed them until sunset. This seems to make them graze more than feeding at any other time. And I guess this makes sense. If I feed them in the morning they won't get hungry for awhile. If they wake up hungry and pasture is all they can get, well, that's what they eat.
> 
> I believe that this method helps keep my feed cost down.


Do they beg? We have a young boar who has learned to sing every time someone comes in sight, hoping to get a scratch and some feed. If you are working around him, he never shuts up.


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

tyusclan, I do think you missed my point, but thats ok. It was very common in the old days to feed hogs meat. When draft horses were going out and tractors coming in, horses were worth nothing. Alot of guys would take horses and feed their hogs, cheap feed. I know I could never do that, but alot of people could. >Thanks Marc


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

If your hogs arent grazing, you are spoiling them with too much good feed.
Ours eat green stuff like its candy. they graze, and we feed them a couple wheelbarrow loads of weeds everyday. they love lambs quarter and pig weed.

about the school scraps. we do not take food the students have touched. we get the food from the kitchen, such as carrot tops and melon rinds, anything that went bad in the refers that has not yet been served, and food on the line that did not touch a plate. 
no saliva contamination, never touched by human skin as the kitchen ladies wear gloves. It is perfectly legal. we do it as part of the farm to school program. I have been on the news about it. Its technically called the 'feed the pigs' campaign, (Bob the pig) to be exact.

as far as my advice to the original poster, our pigs cost us the least to feed out of all our animals. we have chickens, turkeys, guineas, rabbits, hogs, cattle, potbellys, dogs, cats, dairy goats.

we scavenge, scrounge, and pick all the feed we can get. We rarely have to actually purchase pig food. Now the chickens on the other hand, cost a small fortune to feed. I will agree with you there.


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## Looking4ewes (Apr 30, 2006)

Okay, so I have proven myself an idiot with math! ;-) Sorry about that.

I like the suggestion about once a day feeding to promote pasture grazing. Currently, I feed twice a day and since they are my first pigs, I worry about underfeeding. 

Wendy


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## Farmerga (May 6, 2010)

I have a large black boar that may or may not come up for his daily feeding of grain and I have mulefoot pigs that will scream until I give them their grain. Breed characteristics do make a difference, but, they do all graze.

http://dostersheritagefarm.com


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