Any other juicers out there?

[ValerieJ]

Every day I put a bowl of ground up vegetables on the mulch pile. My juicer is a good one, so what's left is pretty dry, and that's the only reason I haven't just tried giving it to the chickens. I was wondering if anyone else likes to juice and if they feed any of the scraps to the chickens. I know some veges wouldn't work and I'd have to look that up. For example I wouldn't be able to include tomatoes because the skins are not good for them and that definitely ends up in the debris. But carrots, beets, cucumber, apple, celery? Of course there are absolutely no strings left from the celery. Well, if you are a juicer, you know what I'm talking about. Would love to get your thoughts on this.

 

[DallasLoneStar]

I think the stuff that is left is mostly fiber. Not a lot of nutrition. So it may just end up making them feel full but if fed often, possibly become malnourished.

 

[ValerieJ]

Good point. Thanks!

 

[Fishkeeper]

I'm pretty sure there's a lot of nutrition still in the pulp. I mean, you can dry veggies to preserve them in chips, and those are still plenty nutritious. Juicing doesn't in any way change the chemical composition of the fruit material itself, just takes the juice out.

 

[Kale Chips]

Why do you think that tomato skin is bad for chickens? I can't find anything online that mentions it and I know mine sure love a good tomato and have never had any problems. Also, if I were in your situation I would treat the leftover pulp like any treat and feed in moderation. I agree that there is probably some nutritional value still in the pulp and I don't see why a little here or there would hurt anything.

 

[ValerieJ]

That's what I was thinking. There is generally more nutrition in the skins of veggies and that is a big part of what's left. I'm also wondering if it is too much fiber though. I don't want to give my girls the runs. I wouldn't give them much, just use as a treat, but I do want to see if anyone has done this and what the result or effects were. Thanks for responding!!!

 

[DallasLoneStar]

Dehydrating is not the same as juicing. I would think it’s almost all fiber if you have a good juicer. A good juicer will extract most of the nutritional value from the fruits and veggies.

 

[ValerieJ]

Why do you think that tomato skin is bad for chickens? I can't find anything online that mentions it and I know mine sure love a good tomato and have never had any problems. Also, if I were in your situation I would treat the leftover pulp like any treat and feed in moderation. I agree that there is probably some nutritional value still in the pulp and I don't see why a little here or there would hurt anything.

LOL I don't know why I think that. When I had tomatoes in my garden a neighbor said I can't give them to my chickens because of the skin. Old wives tale?

For now I'm putting it on the mulch pile; one can never have too much of that, right? And continue to get feedback I hope.

 

[ValerieJ]

Dehydrating is not the same as juicing. I would think it’s almost all fiber if you have a good juicer. A good juicer will extract most of the nutritional value from the fruits and veggies.

Well that's good news and bad news. Good news for me! I need the nutrition. Bad news for the chickens. But no worries. They get plenty of treats.

 

[ValerieJ]

Dehydrating is not the same as juicing. I would think it’s almost all fiber if you have a good juicer. A good juicer will extract most of the nutritional value from the fruits and veggies.

How about this idea: add the juice back into the veggies (small quantities of both) and give that as a treat. The reason I keep pursuing this is because unlike my neighbors, if I put lettuce or other veggies in the coop my chickens don't ever touch it. Maybe that means they don't need it. I do toss out some scratch grains and meal worms every day as a treat, and then I always cut off the ends of watermelon rather thickly and give that to them occasionally. They love that, but they only get it on really hot days. Sometimes on really cold days in the winter I give them warm buttermilk. And their run always has wild plants, grass and weeds growing in it. Perhaps they don't think they need any veggies from my kitchen.