Utilizing the Parrot Chop Principle to Improve Chicken Diets

This is such a smart idea. I normally buy kale or collard greens and whittle them down in my food processor, I do liver, hearts as well and the obvious treats occasionally of blueberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, etc
But your idea is so good bc I do this daily and it's a big drain, but mixing it up and having only one or two days of buying and processing makes it so much easier. I'm really glad you posted this. Thank you!

Love this! Greens and other veggies are SO important for a healthy liver, chickens eating strictly a formulated diet that don't get enough exercise are prone to Fatty Liver. These ingredients are wonderful detox and help flush the liver, kidneys, beef up the immune system, add trace minerals and vitamins they may not get from their chicken feed. Excellent article!

I can't wait to give this a try! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

Great article. I have been looking for recipes for chop for chickens since my daughter mentioned using chop for her pet conures.

A great little article full of usefull information.

i do this too! i also sprinkle some of the extra vitamin/mineral powder leftover from the scratch&peck bag over the shredded veggies plus i sprinkle on some kelp. i only use veggies & a few fruits - no starches. in season, they get an ear of corn to peck - they love that.
i also throw sunflower seeds into my worm farm and when they sprout, they get that too, which they absolutely love, almost as much as the worms!!!

Great info and instruction! And applicable to pet birds like cockatiels
Parrakeets etc.

Great info thanks.

My bantams have been eating my big parrots left over chop for years and loving it. It gives a fantastic beetle sheen and feather luster! However I don't suggest Chilli as it gives some avians the runs. Mustard greens and Chilli are both that way.

Making cheap chop just for chooks, means a chop freezer for a big flock, finding cheapest greens year round, manual food processor it into little portions while fresh, then freezing those cheapest greens year round. You will keep a fine selection of baggies to choose a mixture from and defrost the night before, in the sink, each time you serve!

A bantam will eat two to three tablespoons per day, depending on season, morning and evening, and her scratch mix the rest of the time during the day.

Chop can occasionally have a lot of tinned Fresh Water Tuna thoroughly mixed in, once or twice a week to boost vitamins, minerals and omegas. Or other no-fat, fine diced, lean meats. So no skin if you give them chicken or Turkey.

3 times a week is optimal for these meat/fish boosts for the premium diet.

Amazon Cheap ~$30AU Manual Food Processor
or
Tupperware ~$130AU Manual Food Processor

Either will get you to approx quarter inch square pieces for bantams or just under 1cm square pieces for big chooks aka large fowl.

Whole peas, whole corn kernals, whole grapes, whole small berries, add all these for interest UNchopped. (I buy frozen berries in bulk packets and add them in by the handful, defrosted, as in Australia the fresh berry selection of small berries is minimal).

No onion and no mushrooms, not healthy and dont want fungi spores growing in their crops.

Any fruit works perfectly fine to freeze and defrost ideally already mixed, like frozen poultry fruit salad portions in ziplocks ready to go in with their vegetables.

No it wont look look pretty, but it will taste fantastic. Only citrus doesn't work so well except with very small mandarin segments.

Once it's all a pile of soggy ziplock bags in the sink in the morning, open each, drain any excess moisture out, and empty each into a mixing tub - a plastic washing up tub or baby bath works depending on flock size.
Then get out your wooden spoon and gently start turning it all in, mixing it gently.

Pre cook any grains to make them swell entirely for safety so they don't swell inside a bird after being eaten!!! DO NOT serve hot!!!
Mix in once cooled.

Add whatever you have fresh, fruit or veg, in with the defrosted stuff, to give more texture interest too.

Serve once ready!

Final Note - Remember that apple, though they love it dearly, temporarily restricts their egg laying for about 6 to 12 hours, depending on how much they eat.

Hopefully this helps!
Good Luck,

Dr Alicia Manolas
Avian Specialist Trainer
Western Australia

Excellent article! Most of us supplement with greens but I never thought of freezing!

I think this is a great idea, to add to the nutition, but I donot see how in any way you are saving money. Have you priced Bob's mixed grains, flax, etc. Or the more pricy vegs, you show in your pictures, like peppers.
i will start buying frozen vegs when on sale and add it to my girls diet when they cannot free range. My garden will feed them from July thru DEc, as I plant extra greens just for them.

@angeldiver The answer to your question is in the context of the article “Ratios are general, and I usually grab a handful of the mix to test for dryness. If it turns into a giant ball of glop, it is too wet and I will add dry ingredients until the consistency is a uniform crumble.”

It’s a mix as you will till you reach a crumble consistency. Since they mix it in with their fermented feed (which on my place ends up pretty wet) you wouldn’t want it to have additional moisture.

Question: how much of each of the dry ingredients do you start with: 1/2 cup; 1 cup? Do you use smaller amounts of the fun add-ins? Just trying to get it right. Thanks.

Very helpful article!

Excellent article! I love this for winter variety! I do have to ask, how much do you give, and how often? Thank you!

Excellent ingredients...& my Chickens agree!
Not only does it provide more nutrition but it also satisfies their foraging instincts & is downright fun for them...the various colors, tastes & textures keep them interested.
I've even put a scoop of chop in a half cantaloupe or watermelon...they love it!

I have my live "mealworm farm" & my mealworms are fed the chicken layer feed & yams, so they're a nice addition to the chop, too. (Not with frozen food.)

I'm definitely going to try this, although will start small. My girls ignore cabbage, barley sprouts, squash and several of the things they're "supposed" to love. They do adore berries, though. I think maybe the tiny pieces will help, especially for banties.
I appreciate the combination of detail and flexibility in your "recipe".

I’ve read this before, but wanted to leave a rating now. This is an excellent article outlining a simple way to add varied nutrition and interest, especially for chickens living in a run most of the time. I have found some of the “chop” can be done by running the veggies over a cheese grater when making small batches of this. For someone making this fresh in small batches, another thing to consider is sprouting some of the grain.

Excellent plan! There are several ingredients there I never would have thought of feeding to chickens, I like the new ideas!

I completely agree with the thoughts on commercial feeds here. They provide the bare minimum of nutrients the chickens need. It is up to us to supply the rest of the things a truly healthy chicken should have!

Great article, informative and practical, with good tips for assembly. I can do this in smaller quantities (my freezer space is limited).