- Dec 31, 2011
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I have the same issue -- my RR won't eat cracked corn. I tried to include a link to the article below but the administrator didn't allow me to post the link. If interested in the article, just do a search and provide a few key words and I'm sure the proper link will appear.
by Celia Bertoia
I have had chickens for over twenty years. Since living in Bozeman for thirteen years, my chickens have eaten the same feed and scratch from the same farm / ranch supply store. My hens have always looked forward to enjoying the scratch, a combination of millet, cracked corn, and other whole grains. Still, scratch is their favorite food. Now I need to say it was their favorite food.
Sometime in the last year, my chickens began to flatly refuse the cracked corn included in the scratch. This was during the winter, so they were definitely not filling up on grass and worms. At first, I thought it was possibly moldy or just old, so purchased a new bag. That didn't do it. They would nibble at the chicken crumbles or layer pellets, which contain lots of smooshed grains including corn, but that didn't really do it either. The hens would not touch the corn in an alternative brand of scratch; even that didn't do it. Broadening my perspective, a different feed store garnered my attention. The store manager listened with great interest about my hens not liking the corn anymore. My theory was that the genetically modified corn has finally grown too rich with the Roundup Ready genes or other genetically modified organisms included in the crops.
Corn and soy are the most highly used and grown GMO crops in the country. Hens won't eat insecticides or toxins, which is basically what is in GMOs. He suggested a natural locally grown combination that he mixed right there at their store, called Kibbys mix, named after the gal who concocted the mix proportions. Kibby's mix does have corn, but it is not genetically modified. Guess what? You got it my hens gobbled it right up. They love it. It wasn't organic; it was just non GMO, locally raised corn.
A research paper done by J.S. De Mendovois published in the International Journal of Biological Sciences reports that tests found that rats ingesting the [GMO] corn were subject to statistically significant amounts of organ toxicity. Looking at three different varieties of GM maize, it was discovered that effects were mostly associated with the kidney and liver, the dietary detoxifying organs, although different between the three GMOs. Other effects were also noticed in the heart, adrenal glands, spleen and haematopoietic system. We conclude that these data highlight signs of hepatorenal toxicity, possibly due to the new pesticides specific to each GM corn. Monsanto, manufacturer of GM corn, as well as the FDA, insist that GM corn is perfectly safe for animals and humans alike. I have no idea what a haematopoiectic system is, but I know I want it working in my hens and in me, too. If my hens won't eat GM corn, it isn't good.
Celia Bertoia is a chicken lover, garden grower, and small business owner living in Bozeman.
I edited the above article slightly but include a link to the original article. I will have to wait and see if this refusal to eat the cracked corn persists throughout the winter months. Although I tend to believe the conlcusions of the author above. What is happening to our planet is scary. I visited my local rural feed store and asked if they had chicken feed not containing Soy. They all looked at me like I was from a different planet.
by Celia Bertoia
I have had chickens for over twenty years. Since living in Bozeman for thirteen years, my chickens have eaten the same feed and scratch from the same farm / ranch supply store. My hens have always looked forward to enjoying the scratch, a combination of millet, cracked corn, and other whole grains. Still, scratch is their favorite food. Now I need to say it was their favorite food.
Sometime in the last year, my chickens began to flatly refuse the cracked corn included in the scratch. This was during the winter, so they were definitely not filling up on grass and worms. At first, I thought it was possibly moldy or just old, so purchased a new bag. That didn't do it. They would nibble at the chicken crumbles or layer pellets, which contain lots of smooshed grains including corn, but that didn't really do it either. The hens would not touch the corn in an alternative brand of scratch; even that didn't do it. Broadening my perspective, a different feed store garnered my attention. The store manager listened with great interest about my hens not liking the corn anymore. My theory was that the genetically modified corn has finally grown too rich with the Roundup Ready genes or other genetically modified organisms included in the crops.
Corn and soy are the most highly used and grown GMO crops in the country. Hens won't eat insecticides or toxins, which is basically what is in GMOs. He suggested a natural locally grown combination that he mixed right there at their store, called Kibbys mix, named after the gal who concocted the mix proportions. Kibby's mix does have corn, but it is not genetically modified. Guess what? You got it my hens gobbled it right up. They love it. It wasn't organic; it was just non GMO, locally raised corn.
A research paper done by J.S. De Mendovois published in the International Journal of Biological Sciences reports that tests found that rats ingesting the [GMO] corn were subject to statistically significant amounts of organ toxicity. Looking at three different varieties of GM maize, it was discovered that effects were mostly associated with the kidney and liver, the dietary detoxifying organs, although different between the three GMOs. Other effects were also noticed in the heart, adrenal glands, spleen and haematopoietic system. We conclude that these data highlight signs of hepatorenal toxicity, possibly due to the new pesticides specific to each GM corn. Monsanto, manufacturer of GM corn, as well as the FDA, insist that GM corn is perfectly safe for animals and humans alike. I have no idea what a haematopoiectic system is, but I know I want it working in my hens and in me, too. If my hens won't eat GM corn, it isn't good.
Celia Bertoia is a chicken lover, garden grower, and small business owner living in Bozeman.
I edited the above article slightly but include a link to the original article. I will have to wait and see if this refusal to eat the cracked corn persists throughout the winter months. Although I tend to believe the conlcusions of the author above. What is happening to our planet is scary. I visited my local rural feed store and asked if they had chicken feed not containing Soy. They all looked at me like I was from a different planet.
