The Foundation: Layer Feed
Your flock's diet starts with a complete layer feed. This is the main meal, designed to provide balanced protein and nutrients for egg-laying hens. A high-quality layer feed like Small Pet Select's Non-GMO, Corn & Soy Free Chicken Layer Feed uses locally sourced ingredients from the Pacific Northwest and avoids corn and soy fillers. It combines high protein pellets with grains and seeds, giving hens both essential nutrition and the excitement of whole grains mixed throughout.
Complete Nutrition for Laying Hens
- Chicken Layer Feed, Non-GMO, Corn & Soy Free: Chicken Layer Feed, Non-GMO, Corn & Soy Free, is a mix of everything your flock needs, combining high protein pellets, grains, and seeds. All ingredients are locally sourced in the Pacific Northwest, and are completely soy-free, corn-free, and non-GMO. This feed serves as the primary, balanced meal for laying hens, ensuring they get the protein and nutrients needed for health and egg production without low-quality fillers.
Chicken Layer Feed, Non-GMO, Corn & Soy Free
Scratch as a Treat, Not a Meal
Chickens love to scratch and peck, and giving them a high-quality scratch mix supports that natural behavior. Sustainable Chicken Scratch from Small Pet Select is U.S. sourced and GMO-free. However, scratch grains are not a complete feed. The supplier recommends scratch take up no more than 5-10% of a chicken's overall diet. Think of it as a healthy snack that encourages foraging, not a substitute for layer feed.
Scratch Feeding Guidelines
- Sustainable Chicken Scratch: We recommend chicken scratch be fed as a treat and take up no more than 5-10% of a chicken's overall diet. This keeps scratch in its proper role as an enrichment treat, preventing nutritional imbalances that can occur if hens fill up on grains instead of balanced feed.
Sustainable Chicken Scratch
Enrichment Treats for Happy Hens
Beyond basic nutrition, chickens benefit from enrichment that encourages natural pecking, chasing, and exploring. Coop Cookies are pressed into firm, long-lasting 7 cm treats made with alfalfa, oats, marigold flowers, and aromatic herbs. They promote foraging behavior, reduce boredom, and can help minimize feather pecking or aggression. These are best offered as an occasional enrichment item, not a daily ration.
Enrichment That Works
- Coop Cookies: Each cookie is pressed under high pressure into a firm, long-lasting 7 cm treat, perfect for encouraging natural pecking and play. Enrichment treats like these can help reduce boredom, ease stress, and minimize unwanted behaviors such as feather pecking or aggression. Coop Cookies provide mental and physical stimulation, supporting overall wellbeing without replacing the balanced nutrition from layer feed.
Putting It All Together
A healthy chicken diet is built on a complete layer feed as the daily staple, with scratch grains offered sparingly (no more than 10% of intake) and enrichment treats like Coop Cookies used occasionally. This approach ensures your hens get balanced nutrition, enjoy natural foraging behaviors, and stay engaged. Variety matters, but the foundation should always be a high-quality feed that meets their protein and nutrient needs.
