If you’ve been following either of my recipes for homemade chicken feed (the original whole-grain feed or the updated corn-free feed), you may have wondered how to calculate the protein content of the recipe should you decide to mix things up.
Perhaps you want to try some other grains and seeds for your flock, or you need to formulate a higher-protein feed for baby chicks, growers, or chickens going through a hard molt.
I personally use a spreadsheet to calculate my figures and manage my costs, and now I’m making this file available to you!
I created this spreadsheet when I first started making my own chicken feed, and still use it from time to time when I reformulate my recipe. (This usually happens in late summer to early fall, when my flock is molting and their nutritional needs change a bit.)
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Garden Betty’s Chicken Feed Calculator works as an Excel (.xlsx) download, so you can save the spreadsheet to your computer, create a custom recipe, and edit the information as needed.
I’ve included a list of common grains, seeds, legumes, and other ingredients that typically make up a poultry feed, along with their crude protein content and crude fat content.
After entering the quantity and weight of each ingredient you use, the total protein will update automatically, allowing you to formulate your feed on the fly.
Weight is the most accurate measure for whole grains, so I recommend investing in a kitchen scale if you haven’t already. This is the one I use.
The amount of protein you should aim for depends on the age of your chickens.
Age Range | Amount of Protein Required |
Chick starter (1 to 8 weeks) | 20 to 22 percent protein |
Grower (8 to 18 weeks) | 16 to 17 percent protein |
Layer (18 weeks plus, or after the first egg) | 16 to 17 percent protein, plus free-choice oyster shells (for calcium) |
While the recommended ranges are ideal for feeding, they don’t take into account other greens, weeds, seeds, bugs, and treats that your chickens may eat throughout the day, especially if they free-range.
Don’t get too hung up on the number if you’re feeding other things besides grains; a diverse diet is more important than a strict percentage.
I’ve also included a column to calculate the cost of your ingredients. Simply input the price per pound, and the spreadsheet will update with the total cost of your feed. This is especially useful for figuring out if it’s cost-effective to buy certain ingredients.
I buy mine in bulk from Azure Standard, as well as from Amazon (using their free Prime shipping — you can sign up for a 30-day trial here) and my local feed stores.
Keep in mind that the spreadsheet offers a simplistic view of your flock’s nutritional needs. It only determines the protein level of your feed, and doesn’t consider the other crucial components of a diet, such as amino acids, vitamins, and minerals.
Try to use a wide variety of grains, seeds, and legumes (as well as a steady supply of greens and kitchen scraps) to round out your chickens’ feed.
(If you want to learn more, the University of Kentucky Poultry Extension offers excellent information on poultry nutrition.)
The protein and fat content shown for each ingredient are based on nutrition information sourced from my own ingredient labels, as well as typical values listed on cooperative extension sites.
They are not identical across producers (sometimes differing by several points depending on the varieties and growing conditions).
In order to have the most accurate calculation for your custom feed, use the nutrition information from your own packaging, or ask the feed mill from where you source your ingredients.
If you’re adding new ingredients to the spreadsheet but don’t know their nutritional values, a reliable source to check is Self’s Nutrition Data.
Enter the name of your ingredient in the search box, select the appropriate result, change the serving size to 100 grams, and use the figures shown under “Total Fat” and “Protein.” An ingredient listing 1g of fat and 15g of protein will have 1 percent fat and 15 percent protein, for example.
You can download the chicken feed calculator by entering your email address below. (Your email will not be given or sold to third parties. I hate spam, too.)
Happy mixing!
108 Comments
Melinda Kirch
March 29, 2019 at 2:12 amI downloaded the calculator and went to enter an amount and the result columns errors. How do I fix this
Linda from Garden Betty
June 10, 2019 at 1:16 amWhat column did you enter the amount in? And what kind of amount? The formulas in the spreadsheet are designed to calculate whatever you enter, so is it possible you mistyped one of the quantities or weights?
SarOte YenchAi
February 12, 2019 at 9:27 amHow can I receive the spreadsheet for calculator
Linda from Garden Betty
June 10, 2019 at 1:35 amHi, all instructions are in this post!
Daudi Nkwama
January 18, 2019 at 9:31 amHow can I too get the spreadsheet of chicken feed calculator, my e-mail
nkwamadaudi@yahoo.com
Linda from Garden Betty
February 6, 2019 at 2:42 amHi, I checked your email but was unable to locate it in my database. Please follow the instructions in this blog post for adding your email to confirm that you want to receive the spreadsheet.
Ramon A.
October 18, 2018 at 1:18 pmI dont get any email. I tried several and also checked spam folder.
Linda from Garden Betty
October 19, 2018 at 7:28 pmHi Peter, please email me (using the Contact page on this site) so I can look up your email address and see if it’s been sent to you.
nancy barratt
September 12, 2018 at 4:48 pmLinda
On your spreadsheet column titles, what is the difference between the 2 columns:
Crude
Protein Content
and
Crude Protein %
in Feed
Linda from Garden Betty
October 12, 2018 at 11:37 pmCrude Protein Content is the amount of crude protein in a single ingredient. Crude Protein % in Feed is the percentage of crude protein that the ingredient comprises in the whole feed mixture (this column is calculated automatically when you input the other values).
martin hernandez
June 6, 2018 at 4:17 pmHi Garden Betty’s I entered my email but I haven’t receive the chicken feed calculator. Please send me, I would thank you forever.
Linda from Garden Betty
June 21, 2018 at 1:07 amHi, please check your spam folder, as the emails sometimes get routed there.
Kimberly
September 4, 2017 at 7:32 pmI am not receiving email to confirm contact info, not in junk file/spam either.
tim
June 14, 2017 at 6:44 pmNot sure why but I can’t open the spreadsheet from the link you sent, is there anyway you could send it to me as an attachment?
Linda from Garden Betty
June 17, 2017 at 6:58 amYou need to have some type of spreadsheet program on your computer in order to open the file.
Pam Handlon Sykes
April 22, 2017 at 4:41 pmI signed up for the chicken feed calculator and I have a spreadsheet, but didn’t receive it…what went wrong?
Linda from Garden Betty
May 18, 2017 at 8:09 amMy account shows the email was sent on April 22, 2017 09:17 AM. You may want to check your spam folder, or if you pull your emails into Gmail, check the Updates or Promotions tabs. I’ve also resent it to your email.
Nicholle
November 17, 2016 at 1:28 pmI have an apple computer and can’t get this to open in a format that I can edit it. Any ideas of how I download onto Mac and it can be edited? Thanks!
Linda Ly of Garden Betty
November 17, 2016 at 10:32 pmHi, you need a spreadsheet program (like Excel, Numbers, or Google sheets) to open the file and enable the calculating functions to work.
Liz
September 2, 2016 at 5:47 amHi
I have used your spreadsheet for 12 months now & the chickens love the diy mix & have been really healthy. However, they have now all gone into the moult & even though I have upped their protein content, they keep having soft shelled eggs. They have loads of calcium available on tap, both the oyster shell & egg shells but they still have a problem. Have you come across this before using mixed grains rather than straight pellet food? I am loathe to switch to just pellets, especially since my girls hate them & always leave them until last! Any ideas what they are lacking? Their mix consists of pellets,wheat, barley, oats, mealworms, sunflower seeds & hemp & is at 18% protein but I am now topping up with some fish/meat protein to try & boost protein levels, but it not making any difference?
Linda Ly of Garden Betty
October 15, 2016 at 1:04 amThe molting period is a time of intense change in a chicken, so as long as yours appear healthy and are still drinking and eating normally, I wouldn’t worry too much about the soft shelled eggs. Sometimes, their reproductive systems simply can’t keep up with the calcium needs of both their eggs and their feathers. Once they regrow their feathers, their eggs should be back to normal. One tip I do have is scrambled eggs; my ladies love them. I end up buying eggs in their off season and will sometimes scramble an egg for them as a special treat, in addition to their mealworms and sunflower seeds.
Sophie
April 11, 2016 at 1:43 pmThanks so much for sharing this with us! I would like to formulate a recipe using your spreadsheet, but I don’t have all the ingredients. I’d like to buy them after I formulate it. So the problem I’ve run into is, how do I find the weight of 1 cup of each grain If I don’t already have the grains? Do you have a list of what the grains each weigh? Any help is appreciated!
Sophie
April 11, 2016 at 2:02 pmAlso, If I am putting the “weight per cup (Ibs)” of ingredients, say Hard Red Wheat, how would I write that if it is 6.5oz per cup of wheat?
Linda Ly of Garden Betty
April 11, 2016 at 7:56 pmUnfortunately you will need to know the weights of your ingredients before calculating, and I don’t have a list handy. If you don’t want to buy all the grains in bulk just yet, you can buy small amounts from Whole Foods, Sprouts, or WinCo (or whoever has bulk bins in your area) for the purpose of calculating. As for converting ounces to pounds, that’s pretty easy: just type into Google “how many pounds in 6.5 ounces” and it will calculate it for you.
Heather
March 25, 2016 at 4:52 pmI can not figure out for the life of me how to save the spreadsheet. There are no links, icons or files to be able to save and modify. Please help.
Linda Ly of Garden Betty
April 11, 2016 at 7:45 pmHi Heather, please follow all the instructions in the email that was sent to you when you requested access. If you did not receive an email, double-check that your address was entered correctly and try again.
Kelly Couch
March 20, 2016 at 3:30 pmWOW thank you for this. We are about to introduce our first batch of chicks to the hens. We will do a chicken tractor inside the electric poultry net as a half way house (they chicks are 4 weeks and we are in texas) cause we need the brooder for some new babies. But at 6 weeks we want to combine the pullets and the hens. Should we feed them all a grower formula (since pullets can’t eat the layer ration)? and then what do we need to offer the hens and the chicks to meet unique needs?
Kelly Couch
March 20, 2016 at 3:41 pmalso I am not able to edit the feed calculator
Linda Ly of Garden Betty
April 11, 2016 at 7:51 pmJust wanted to respond to this again, though I think from your last email that you were finally able to edit the spreadsheet. Hope you’re finding it useful!
As for your question on the chicks, pullets, and layers diets: I would keep the chick feed separate, but give the pullets and layers the same feed. The only difference between the pullets and layers is the added calcium, which is served free-choice. So, chances are the layers will know to take those for themselves.
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Robyn Barcomb
August 1, 2015 at 5:47 pmReally loving your site and sharing it with all my chicken keeping friends. I too am excited about the calculator. It is a weekend, so I know you are probably out working in the garden, so I will probably receive it soon. Hope you are having a great summer!
Linda Ly
August 5, 2015 at 7:46 pmHi Robyn, I hope you enjoy using the calculator! It makes formulating so much easier when you can just plug in numbers you know.
Emilia
May 19, 2015 at 12:51 pmHey Garden Betty, thank you for the information on feeding chickens. I am excited to mix my own feed using this calculator but I entered my email and confirmed about a week ago and am still waiting. Can you send the calculator to me?
Emilia
May 20, 2015 at 4:17 pmOops! I found it in the promotions section of gmail.
Linda Ly
May 20, 2015 at 11:42 pmGlad you found it! 🙂
Jade
May 10, 2015 at 5:54 pmHi Betty! Happy Mothers Day! Sorry, but I also entered and email, confirmed & have not gotten your calculator. Can you help me please?
Linda Ly
May 11, 2015 at 3:07 amI just looked up your email (the one used for this comment), but did not pull anything up under that account. Please email me and let me know if you used a different address to sign up.
Dee
May 11, 2015 at 10:24 amHi Linda (aka Betty). You are great! Thanks for your valuable time. My email is: redkey@verizon.net
I also live in SoCal & can’t find the animal grade brewers yeast without garlic. Can you please let me know where you buy yours? Thanks for all that you do! I so appreciate you!
Dee
May 11, 2015 at 10:31 amHi Linda. I just sent you an email that I used for this comment. Thanks for helping! Can’t wait to try out your calculator. I know it was a lot of work. Thanks for the service!
Dee
May 11, 2015 at 12:19 pmThanks, just received your sheet & it looks like you put a lot of work into it. My chickens thank you!!!
Linda Ly
May 11, 2015 at 11:18 pmI use the AniMed brand, which you can find online or in feed supply stores here.
Shari Flanders
May 4, 2015 at 6:05 pmI entered email and confirmed today and I have not gotten it either! 🙁
Linda Ly
May 6, 2015 at 3:28 pmHi Shari, it looks like your email finally arrived as well! Sorry for the delay!