How do you feed OATS to chickens?

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Barry Natchitoches

Barry Natchitoches

Songster
11 Years
Sep 4, 2008
649
47
194
Tennessee
Please forgive me -- I'm a southern city boy who was raised on grits, not oatmeal.


A friend has given me a sack of whole oats.


How do I feed this to my chickens? Do I have to grind it up, or can I feed it to them as is?


Do I have to cook it? Do I have to "roll" it?


What is the difference between whole oats and "rolled" oats, anyway?


I'm just looking at the stuff, and wondering what to do with it.
 
I use whole oats in my scratch mix, along with cracked corn, sunflower seeds, and wild bird seed. They eat em right up. So just throw a few handfuls to them. Might take them a while to figure it out, but they will.
 
I just pour hot water over mine to get them a bit soupy.. some times add a bit of milk or yourget m ix in some table scraps and what a treat.. mine will eat them raw.. but I give it to them warm cause its cold here in NJ and they gobble the stuff right up before anything else....I think it is an ingredient in the scratch mix I use as well
 
Quote:
Oat Groats is hearts of the Oats (hulled grain).
wink.png


Chris
 
so you should cook the oats??

maybe I'm not ready to go that extra step of cooking for my chickens...lol...(no, they arent here yet...but I have a hard enough time finding time to cook for my human children!!)...

I was hoping to take advantage of raw groats/oats...
 
Fred's Hens :

Healthy extra they'll enjoy.

Pour one cup into 3 cups of boiling water. Cover with heat on very low. Cook for 8 minutes. Allow to cool. Dump on the ground for scratch, or place in feed trough. Similar to boiling to rice.

Here in Scotland that is what's known as PORRIDGE. Best breakfast in the world! That'll put hair on your chickens' chests. LOL!​
 
I don't cook anything.
Like halo, I just scatter the whole oats, whole wheat, BOSS and bird seed or millet. More BOSS when it's colder or boosting protein.

If chickens are free ranging and find a seed - they don't cook it first.

The whole grain retains nutrients much longer.
I no longer give cracked corn for that reason. Don't know how long its been around.
 

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