Chicken feed & daily supplies

By Megan Lawson · Editor · May 14, 2026

The consumables side of keeping chickens. Get the feeders right once and they outlast everything else; get the feed wrong and you'll see it in poor laying or soft-shelled eggs within a couple of weeks. This silo organises every daily-supply decision into four clusters: feed by life stage, feeders and waterers, bedding, and the supplements that actually matter.

A note on diatomaceous earth before we start. Every backyard-chicken site treats it as a miracle product. It's a useful coop hygiene aid in a clean coop. It is not a parasite treatment plan. If your flock has visible mites, lice, or worms, you need a poultry vet — not a bag of dust.

Feed by life stage

Most decisions here are timing decisions. Four stages, four feeds.

Starter (0–6 weeks)

• 18–20% protein, finely crumbled for tiny beaks.
• Medicated (amprolium for coccidiosis prevention) or unmedicated — choose based on your hatchery's vaccinations and your local poultry-club's consensus.
• Don't dose medications without veterinary input. Stick to feed-as-labelled.

Grower (6–18 weeks)

• 15–17% protein. Transitional, slower-grow phase.
• Don't switch to layer feed early — calcium overload damages young kidneys.

Layer (18+ weeks)

• 16–18% protein PLUS 3.5–4.5% calcium.
• Calcium drives eggshell production. Without it, soft shells and brittle hens.
• Pellets, crumbles, or mash — form factor matters less than the calcium content. Pellets generally waste less.

Scratch grain

• A treat, not a meal. Cap at 10% of total diet.
• Low protein, high carb. Useful for winter warmth (digestion generates heat) but never a complete food.

Feeders & waterers

The infrastructure layer. Get these right once and they outlast everything else on this list.

The four feeder types

• Treadle feeders — Step-on, weight-activated. Heavy, weather-proof, rodent-proof. $80–120. Worth every cent for outdoor setups where rats and raccoons are an issue.
• Hanging feeders — Cheaper ($30–50), better for sheltered runs. Hang from a chain or rope so they swing — discourages perching on top.
• Trough feeders — Cheapest ($15–30) and worst for waste. Birds scratch out half the feed. Skip for adult flocks; useful for chicks where the narrow lip is the safety feature.
• PVC-pipe DIY feeders — Cheap to build, low waste, doesn't keep rodents out. Fine if your coop is otherwise rodent-secure.

Waterers

• Standard plastic gravity-fed waterer — $20–40. Fine in mild climates.
• Heated waterer (built-in or separate base) — $60–100. Essential in any climate that drops below freezing. The cost buys you not breaking ice every morning at 6 AM in February.
• Nipple waterers — Drip-style, attached to a PVC pipe or bucket. Cleaner than open bowls (no algae) but birds need a few days to learn them.

Sizing

• 1 gallon of water per 4 hens daily as a rough baseline. Double in summer.
• 1 pound of feed per 4 hens daily for a layer flock.

Bedding

Bedding does three jobs at once: cushions eggs in nest boxes, absorbs moisture and droppings on the coop floor, and acts as the base layer for the deep-litter method.

Four common options

• Pine shavings — The default. Cheap ($5–8 per bale), absorbent, mild smell, composts in 6–12 months. Avoid cedar shavings — toxic to chickens (respiratory).
• Hemp bedding — Premium. Denser, lower dust, longer-lasting than pine. 2–3× the price but 2–4× the absorbency. Worth it for asthma-prone keepers or deep-litter setups.
• Sand — Cheap, drains fast, scoopable with a litter rake. Best in dry climates. Heavy to move and not great for nest boxes.
• Straw — Cheap, looks pastoral. Worst absorbency of the four. Skip unless you have free straw and a specific reason.

Supplements & coop hygiene

The non-feed daily-supply layer. None of these are optional for a layer flock, and all of them are common rookie misses.

Oyster shell (calcium)

• Free-choice in a separate dish — never mixed into the feed.
• Laying hens self-regulate calcium intake when oyster shell is available.
• Don't give to chicks or pullets — too much calcium damages young kidneys.

Grit

• Insoluble grit (granite-based, NOT calcium) — required for digestion.
• Free-choice in a separate dish.
• Birds with access to dirt and small stones may get enough naturally. Coop-bound flocks need supplemental grit.

Diatomaceous earth

• Use: coop hygiene aid. Sprinkle in dust baths, bedding, and nest boxes to reduce moisture and discourage external parasites.
• Don't use: as a parasite treatment plan. If your flock has visible mites, lice, or worms, see a poultry vet.
• Food-grade only. Pool-grade is processed differently and dangerous to breathe.

Probiotics + electrolytes

• Useful during heat stress, transport stress, or post-illness recovery.
• Not a daily addition for healthy birds.

Featured guides

The current published guides in this silo. More land each batch.

Landing next: Commercial chicken feeders, Diatomaceous earth for chickens, Calcium for chickens, Chicken feeder types, Chicken waterer guide, Organic vs non-GMO feed, Layer feed vs crumbles, and Grit for chickens.