Alfalfa?

[ForeverFree]

Okay, well I read online that chickens love alfalfa. So I convinced my grandparents to buy them a bag of Alfalfa cubes. (They did not want the bale of alfalfa, for they were scared that if the chickens wouldn't like it, it would cause a mess in their pen.)
After testing the cubes out with the chickens, I noticed that they were picking at the cubes, but not really getting anything. (The cubes are tightly packed alfalfa. And were probably to hard for their beaks, since they are only 2 months old.)
So, I decided to cut the cubes up and try it with the chickens. I threw it out to them, and they rushed to grab it, but only about 2 of the 12 chickens grabbed some and immediately dropped it.
I have a HUGE bag of this stuff, and I really don't want to waste it.
Can someone tell me how to get them to eat it? All they seem to want to do is scratch around in it.
All help is thanked in advance.

 

[southerndesert]

Not sure how to help with the pellets, but I do feed bale alfalfa and our birds get a little each morning and love it. Here in the desert we have no grass except after heavy rains in winter or during our monsoon season so it is how we add greens to their diet. We do also feed other greens as treats, but alfalfa is the main green forage for them.

also expensive here at 14.50 a bale

But a bale lasts a very long time even with over 30 birds.

Makes for better eggs though....

 

[ForeverFree]

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I'm pretty sure the alfalfa cubes are a lost cause. I'll probably just throw them outside for the wild bunnies.
Oh yeah $14.50 a bale? I've looked online, it's $11.99 here.
But if it goes far with 30+ birds, it'll definitely keep them happy for a while.
Does it cause a mess for you at all?

 

[mercedes]

I also feed alfalfa to my chickens because of the lack of greens.I feed cubes or pellets,whatever the horse and goats are eating at the time.I found that you have to soak them first(the alfalfa,not the goats)and that seems to make it more appealing to the chickens.

 

[enggass]

I bought a bale of Alfalfa and give flakes of it to my flock from time to time... they seem to enjoy it - they eat all of the greens off and leave the stems.

 

[familychickenman]

I have soaked the alfalfa cubes in water or milk overnight and feed it to the chickens. They eat that pretty well.

 

[ForeverFree]

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Oh, what a great idea! Thank you very much!

 

[ForeverFree]

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Yeah, I kinda wish I would've gotten a bale.

 

[ForeverFree]

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So does it look like wet dog food in the end or something?
What do you serve it to them in?
Do you give it a lot of time to dry?

 

[Cindy in PA]

You soak them until they start to fall apart and break them apart & throw it in the pen. They will eat everything except the hard stems. They will scratch thru it. If you use pellets soak them too & they fall apart into little bits.