2018 Newbie Chat!

[Anna Ranieri]

The funny thing about Big Red is he couldn't care less when I'm out with my husband. It's when I'm alone that he has a problem with me. I guess he knows DH is the keeper of the chickens and my time handling them went to basically zero when I had my little. They don't remember all the care I used to give. So I guess when I'm with the chicken keeper I'm ok because he's ok. Seriously when I'm at the fence he walks wherever I do and never takes his eyes off me. When I'm with my husband he goes about his duties with the girls never approaching me.

So he sees you as a threat perhaps?

 

[Anna Ranieri]

I had my little with me today (and it's already sundown here) so I didnt get great pictures but the green in his tail is so shiny and bright. Just looking over the pictures I took and they seriously don't do him justice. I'll get better ones tomorrow.
View attachment 1509212
Ok I found an older picture of Casper that shows his feathering so much better.
View attachment 1509233
I decided to get some of Big Red and the girls too.
Top left is Meredith. Next to her is Kat. The one with the white head is Cricket.
Speckled at the bottom is Lil Taco. Lastly the red at the bottom is Patsy.
View attachment 1509219
This picture has Dak on the furthest left. She was the only one missing from the first picture.
View attachment 1509220
And...
View attachment 1509221

Gorgeous colours

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Ok so... I kept reading that chickens love yogurt, and read that so do ducks... Also read that chickens (and ducks) love broccoli, cabbage, carrots, strawberries and blue berries, so thought I'd buy the lot but found they don't like any of them! I want my chickens to have the yogurt as I've read its extremely good for them so I mixed it in with one of their favourite treats (corn/wheat/maize mix) then watched astonished as my head hen picked each out one by one and painstakingly wiped them along the surface of the ledge she was standing on until they were practically yogurt free, then she ate them! -- Is yogurt a vital part of a chickens diet and if so any ideas on how I can get them to eat it plz?

 

[CannedMonster]

Ok so... I kept reading that chickens love yogurt, and read that so do ducks... Also read that chickens (and ducks) love broccoli, cabbage, carrots, strawberries and blue berries, so thought I'd buy the lot but found they don't like any of them! I want my chickens to have the yogurt as I've read its extremely good for them so I mixed it in with one of their favourite treats (corn/wheat/maize mix) then watched astonished as my head hen picked each out one by one and painstakingly wiped them along the surface of the ledge she was standing on until they were practically yogurt free, then she ate them! -- Is yogurt a vital part of a chickens diet and if so any ideas on how I can get them to eat it plz?

Of course yogurt isn’t a vital part of a chickens diet.
It’s dairy.
Chickens are birds not mammals so they don’t actually have the enzymes to process dairy.
They can digest small amounts but they don’t need a lot at all.
More like a couple of bites.
The yogurt thing is very trendy but not necessary.
If you want them to have probiotics, buy a feed that has them.
The most important thing all of your birds need is a well formulated complete feed for poultry.
Everything else are treats and should only comprise 10% of each birds diet so they don’t become obese and start having problems laying or get fatty liver disease.
What is 10%?
Chickens are small animals.
Treats should be about a 1/2 Tablespoon per bird per day.
With that being said...I personally feel that veggies can be given often without issues.
And watch how much scratch you give.
It usually has corn in it and corn can make them fat quickly without much nutritional value.
Their feed usually already has corn in it anyway.

Also, ducks have different nutritional needs than chickens. They need more niacin.
I occasionally feed my birds cottage cheese or shredded cheese instead of yogurt.
It’s less messy and sometimes you can find cottage cheese with probiotics too.
Again...I only give them enough for each to get a couple of bites.

If you want to give treats they’ll really go nuts for, try sardines or tuna.
Sometimes I’ll do canned salmon with the skin and bones.
Omg they love it! Lol.
Fish is good protein for them.

As for the chickens not liking something...usually it’s that they don’t know it’s food.
Unfortunately since people raise chicks instead of broody hens we don’t know how to show them what food is.
You have to start young.
I pull tiny pieces off for my chicks and after a while they’ll start trying it.
They’re instinctively cautious about anything too large to swallow.
My chicks won’t eat sunflower seeds until they’re about 8 weeks old because they’re too large to swallow before that.

 

[PNW_Peepers]

Ok so... I kept reading that chickens love yogurt, and read that so do ducks... Also read that chickens (and ducks) love broccoli, cabbage, carrots, strawberries and blue berries, so thought I'd buy the lot but found they don't like any of them! I want my chickens to have the yogurt as I've read its extremely good for them so I mixed it in with one of their favourite treats (corn/wheat/maize mix) then watched astonished as my head hen picked each out one by one and painstakingly wiped them along the surface of the ledge she was standing on until they were practically yogurt free, then she ate them! -- Is yogurt a vital part of a chickens diet and if so any ideas on how I can get them to eat it plz?

I second what @ChooksNQuilts is saying. Treats are to be kept to a minimum. I give frozen watermelon on very hot days only. Other than that I give my girls animal protein at night. Chickens are omnivores, meaning they need both plant and animal proteins. Mine get boiled egg, black soldier fly larva, tuna, or anchovies.

 

[CannedMonster]

Also mine won’t eat raw carrots.
They do enjoy them cooked however.
Yours won’t eat blueberries!?!

I think mine might commit murder for blueberries or grapes or raisins lol.

@Anna Ranieri

Try opening the blueberries with your fingernails and see if they’ll try them then.
Chickens only have 350 tastebuds to humans 10,000.
Sometimes they need a little coaxing.
I like to cut or pull grapes, strawberries, blueberries etc. in half before I give them so the birds can taste them instead of just swallowing them whole.

As @PNW_Peepers said, protein treats are always good for them and they usually will never turn them down.

When giving chickens eggs always chop hard boiled or scramble them so they don’t look like eggs. You never want to encourage egg eating.

Cat food is also a great treat.
Mine will eat dry small kibble but the wet canned type is very much enjoyed.

 

[Cbarr00]

So he sees you as a threat perhaps?

That or he wants to show me he's alpha. Sometimes they become human aggressive because they think you're part of the flock and beneath them in the pecking order. This behavior is not ok in my flock because if he sees humans as part of the pecking order eventually he will go after my kids and roosters can do damage.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Of course yogurt isn’t a vital part of a chickens diet.
It’s dairy.
Chickens are birds not mammals so they don’t actually have the enzymes to process dairy.
They can digest small amounts but they don’t need a lot at all.
More like a couple of bites.
The yogurt thing is very trendy but not necessary.
If you want them to have probiotics, buy a feed that has them.
The most important thing all of your birds need is a well formulated complete feed for poultry.
Everything else are treats and should only comprise 10% of each birds diet so they don’t become obese and start having problems laying or get fatty liver disease.
What is 10%?
Chickens are small animals.
Treats should be about a 1/2 Tablespoon per bird per day.
With that being said...I personally feel that veggies can be given often without issues.
And watch how much scratch you give.
It usually has corn in it and corn can make them fat quickly without much nutritional value.
Their feed usually already has corn in it anyway.

Also, ducks have different nutritional needs than chickens. They need more niacin.
I occasionally feed my birds cottage cheese or shredded cheese instead of yogurt.
It’s less messy and sometimes you can find cottage cheese with probiotics too.
Again...I only give them enough for each to get a couple of bites.

If you want to give treats they’ll really go nuts for, try sardines or tuna.
Sometimes I’ll do canned salmon with the skin and bones.
Omg they love it! Lol.
Fish is good protein for them.

As for the chickens not liking something...usually it’s that they don’t know it’s food.
Unfortunately since people raise chicks instead of broody hens we don’t know how to show them what food is.
You have to start young.
I pull tiny pieces off for my chicks and after a while they’ll start trying it.
They’re instinctively cautious about anything too large to swallow.
My chicks won’t eat sunflower seeds until they’re about 8 weeks old because they’re too large to swallow before that.

Thank you, I love how knowledgeable you are and as always I thank you greatly for you help, advice and sharing your knowledge.
I won't bother giving it to them any more as they don't need it, its only that so many bang on about how good it is for them and how much they love it, I enjoy when my birds enjoy, so thought I'd give it a try.
I have them on the right feed, its what the top breeders and farmers over here use and the extras I give them are treats. They have lettuce, banana and peas every day - these are their favourites and I give them pasta or dog food occasionally as an extra treat but not very often, I give them meat (cooked) on some occasions and I give them cooked chicken sometimes too (I know there are those who don't agree because they are chickens but I'm ok with it and to them its just meat). They love cooked corn but I'm not giving them any, however I intend to give them cooked corn every night throughout the winter.
I'm going to have a chat with our vet as to whether he thinks I need to give the hens probiotics or not. As for the cracked corn mix - that too is only an occasional treat (although one time having left the door open, I entered to find two very happy chickens sitting in the corn mix bag having a whale of a time!) Other than the veg/fruit, I view these things as sweets, my grandson has his sweetie treats and the birds have theirs. I'll have to buy in some tuna as I want to try them with it, it is illegal to give chickens table/kitchen scraps, so we have to buy and store their food stuff separate to ours. If it has been anywhere in the home it can not be given to them, however if grown in the garden, as long as it doesn't enter the home they can have it - They free range 9/10 hrs most days and on occasion a little less if no one is here to watch over them - which isn't often - and if I'm digging in the garden and find earth worms I give them to them but mostly they find their own. I'd like to give them meal worms but it is illegal here to give them shop bought meal worms - to give them we'd have to farm them ourselves but not only do I not have a clue how to, I think where the heck would I get any to start with if I can't buy them!

 

[Anna Ranieri]

That or he wants to show me he's alpha. Sometimes they become human aggressive because they think you're part of the flock and beneath them in the pecking order. This behavior is not ok in my flock because if he sees humans as part of the pecking order eventually he will go after my kids and roosters can do damage.

Oh my, I've heard stories about roosters going after children, can be dangerous. Will you be able to put him right on this?

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Also mine won’t eat raw carrots.
They do enjoy them cooked however.
Yours won’t eat blueberries!?!

I think mine might commit murder for blueberries or grapes or raisins lol.

@Anna Ranieri

Try opening the blueberries with your fingernails and see if they’ll try them then.
Chickens only have 350 tastebuds to humans 10,000.
Sometimes they need a little coaxing.
I like to cut or pull grapes, strawberries, blueberries etc. in half before I give them so the birds can taste them instead of just swallowing them whole.

As @PNW_Peepers said, protein treats are always good for them and they usually will never turn them down.

When giving chickens eggs always chop hard boiled or scramble them so they don’t look like eggs. You never want to encourage egg eating.

Cat food is also a great treat.
Mine will eat dry small kibble but the wet canned type is very much enjoyed.

Yeah, I did all that, cut them open etc, tried them with cooked carrots too, they picked at them a bit, but not very much - not enough for me to keep trying. I do give them boiled eggs and I give them the egg shell too - egg & shell mashed - don't think we have a kibble here, but will try them with the cat food too. How often do you recommend I give the cat food?