Easy Bird Seed Chicken Scratch Recipe {simple whole grain feed}

If you are wanting to craft your own chicken scratch blends don’t want to waste money on ingredients chickens won’t eat, I have the perfect recipe for you! Bursting with natural seeds and whole grains, your flock won’t leave any of this treat behind! We’ll even share how to use it as an emergency chicken feed. Here’s our easy bird seed chicken scratch recipe:

a mix of white millet, red milo, black oil sunflower seeds, corn and whole oats are spilling out of a wooden scoop on a white surface to show the result of our Bird Seed Chicken Scratch Recipe

Hens LOVE Bird Seed Chicken Scratch

If your hens get any free range time, you may have noticed they make a bee-line for the bird feeder. There they scratch and peck for fallen millet, black oil sunflower seeds, red milo, and pieces of cracked corn. They also relish missed seeds that have begun to sprout into tender micro-greens.

Bird Seed % Protein

The most common bird seed mix (milo, BOSS, corn, and millet) is generally a minimum of 9% protein and 6% fat, which varies because the ratios of each grain in the blend can vary by production lot. (Our calculations on milo-heavy bird seed blends with plenty of black oil sunflower seeds put it around 10-12% protein.) This isn’t a balanced chicken feed for laying hens, who need minimum 16% protein and 4.1% fat. But chickens don’t care; they simply love bird seed!

Here is how I make a chicken-friendly natural scratch version of their favorite seed treat:

close up of a glass jar holding our bird seed scratch recipe mix spilling the seeds and grains out onto a white surface

Easy Bird Seed Chicken Scratch Recipe

This recipe is given in parts so you can make as much or as little as you need. Simply use the same size measuring cup for each ingredient.

2 parts bird seed blend

1 part Whole Oats

1/2 part Black Oil Sunflower Seeds

Directions: Mix all the ingredients together well to create a beautiful blend of natural seeds and grains. We store our scratch mixes in Vittles Vault brand containers which are rain, ant, and rodent proof.

a small pile of bird seed mix, whole oats and black oil sunflower seeds on a white background

Calculating Nutritional Values of Homemade Chicken Feed recipes

The chart below can help you determine the percent of fat and protein in your chicken feed blends if you need to substitute or swap out any ingredients:

nutritional values of common grains seeds & foods used to make homemade chicken scratch recipes

How Much Should I Give?

All types of scratch, even homemade recipes, are a treat. They can make up 10% of your penned hen’s diet. A hen eats around 1/2 cup (8 Tablespoons) of feed per day so treats should be 1 Tablespoon or less to keep her near that 10% range. It is okay if a hen gets a bit more than this once or twice a week. (The bossy girls will certainly eat more than their fair share of the best bits!) Offering a varied diet that provides a wide variety of nutrients is more important than being strict with exact amounts of feed and scratch ratios. If you free range your hens at all, she will easily be able to balance her nutritional needs by instinctive eating.

Red Milo = Sorghum Seed

Grain sorghum (sorghum seed) is often called red milo in the feed world. It is the rusty reddish-brown ball shaped grains that make up the bulk of many bird seed mixes. They have the least protein of all the seeds in the mix so the hens generally eat them last. Any they miss will sprout and those tender, sweet sprouts seem to be enjoyed by the hens.

a mix of white millet, red milo, black oil sunflower seeds, corn and whole oats are spilling out of a glass mason jar onto a white surface to show the result of our Bird Seed Chicken Scratch Recipe

I Hope You Try this Homemade Bird Seed Chicken Scratch Recipe!

If you are brand new to crafting your own chicken food, give this custom mix a try! It is a very safe way to experiment with homemade feeds. I also think you’re going to LOVE the nest box boost new and varied chicken treats provide!

Easy Bird Seed Chicken Scratch Recipe {simple whole grain feed}