My chickens are apparently obese. The leanest one died of fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome last night. (She also apparently was making bright blue beach glass in her gizzard according to the necropsy.)
They currently have freely available layer pellets, water, and oyster shells. However, I also let them wander freely outside the run for a few hours a day. There's almost 4 acres they have access to, and they cross the road to the neighbors. They like hanging under the pine trees and checking out bird feeders.
Could they really be putting on all the extra weight visiting the neighbor's and begging for birdseed? It can't be all the crickets in the yard, can it? I can do something about the former, but not the latter.
I'm not big on giving them treats myself. When I give scraps... they're really scraps. As in tiny, infrequent.
Any suggestions? I've asked my neighbor to stop giving them bird seed directly. Should I limit their access to feed? I think it's things other than layer pellets that they fill up on.
They currently have freely available layer pellets, water, and oyster shells. However, I also let them wander freely outside the run for a few hours a day. There's almost 4 acres they have access to, and they cross the road to the neighbors. They like hanging under the pine trees and checking out bird feeders.
Could they really be putting on all the extra weight visiting the neighbor's and begging for birdseed? It can't be all the crickets in the yard, can it? I can do something about the former, but not the latter.
I'm not big on giving them treats myself. When I give scraps... they're really scraps. As in tiny, infrequent.
Any suggestions? I've asked my neighbor to stop giving them bird seed directly. Should I limit their access to feed? I think it's things other than layer pellets that they fill up on.
