As first time chicken owners, we had no idea there were different feeds for different stages of life. Sure it makes sense, but until you own chickens, you never think about the types of nutrients they need at different stages of development. We found that most store brands of feed will advertise a starter feed for the first 8 weeks. Then a grower feed for week 8 to 16, 18, or 20 weeks, depending on the brand. Once the chickens start laying eggs, they will be switched to a layer feed. We put the feed in a plastic feeder in the brooder but also LOVE feeding the girls by hand.
