Are Herbs and Grass Considered Treats?

[My Three Chicks]

Hi. I'm new to chickens and raising my first flock of 4. They are 20-22 weeks old and are very healthy and active! Yey

My question is...I have a have a bunch of potted herbs (I always check that they are edible for chickens first) in their run that they have free reighn to. They love it and eat quite a lot.

Their run is also partially grass (although quickly disappearing due to their scratching and pecking!). They enjoy eating grass too.

They always have and eat their feed as well.

How do I know if they are eating too much grass or too many herbs? Is there such a thing? Are herbs and grass considered 'treats ' and therefore should be limited to 10% of overall diet?

Your input would be appreciated!

 

[GC-Raptor]

I free range Laying Pullets and Hens an hour daily. I don't consider any grass/weeds they consume as treats.

They have unlimited access to Layer feed and get Scratch Grains daily as a treat. 1 Tbsp each during Summer temps and 2 Tbsps daily rest of the year.
Each of my Hens (16 months old) are still laying 6 to 7 eggs weekly.
GC

 

[Alaskan]

Hi. I'm new to chickens and raising my first flock of 4. They are 20-22 weeks old and are very healthy and active! Yey

My question is...I have a have a bunch of potted herbs (I always check that they are edible for chickens first) in their run that they have free reighn to. They love it and eat quite a lot.

Their run is also partially grass (although quickly disappearing due to their scratching and pecking!). They enjoy eating grass too.

They always have and eat their feed as well.

How do I know if they are eating too much grass or too many herbs? Is there such a thing? Are herbs and grass considered 'treats ' and therefore should be limited to 10% of overall diet?

Your input would be appreciated!

I wouldn't consider the grass or herbs treats.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I wouldn’t consider grass a treat, but it is a feed with some “nutritional considerations”. If your flock free ranges and eats worms and bugs with their grass, it likely all good. If for some reason there aren’t worms and bugs in the mix for some reason, you may want to occasionally supplement their protein intake (or switch to a higher protein feed).

 

[Happy hen lover]

No grass, herbs, and greens is not a treat. I buy marked down spinach and romaine for my 4 girls. They have dry feed all day too. I also give high quality scratch ( small amounts) tossed to keep them busy. I sometimes give protein very small amounts. Cooked eggs, meat scraps, some give mealworms. Those are the treats you have to be careful with. But not grass, I do tomatoes, beet greens , mine don't like anything carrot not even tops. Watermelon rind. .

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Why would one need to be careful with high protein treats but not low protein treats? You want the right amount of protein…so you need to balance everything a bit (I mean, not going crazy about it but moderation).