Are sunflower seeds with shells ok?

[kla37]

Glad I read this, I didn't even think about asking stuff like that before I gave it to my girls!

I figure if the little cardinals can eat them....

 

[jackiejck]

Thanks for the extra info on grit. I'm a "by-the-book" kinda girl, so I'll make sure to buy some grit just in case they don't have enough.

 

[Boo-Boo's Mama]

Quote:
I used sand for the girls when they were chicks so I could offer beet greens as a treat. They have already gone through a small bag of grit since July so I bought a larger bag and offer it in a separate container...my coop/run floor is sand and things tend to 'sink' and get lost...I stopped throwing BOSS to them...found too much down in the sand when I clean up...now it goes in a feeder and I find less wasted.

 

[ndemerly]

I would say yes. I throw a couple handfuls of scratch in the chicken run. And they eat ONLY the seeds.

 

[Mahonri]

Over the years I've noted a number of folks who have had to deal with impacted crops due to sunflower seed shells.

I'll admit I've never given my girls BOSS, nor regular SFS but there are those who do and those who don't.

I don't.

 

[jackiejck]

Boo-Boo Mama: You know, I think you are right about food getting "lost" in the sand. Good point about a feeder for the BOSS.

Mahonri: Well, that is disturbing. I surely don't want to cause impacted crop with the sunflower seeds. Has anybody else heard of the shells causing this problem?

 

[snowflake]

there is a sight were they did impacted crop surgery and it was full of grasses, can't stop them from eating grasses. mine love BOSS and every other kind of seed they can get their beaks on. I'm not sure what causes impacted crop, but I don't think it is one type of food; just something that happens . soil, sand, gravel in the yard should be good grit. Do they do any free ranging?

 

[jackiejck]

snowflake: Yes, they roam around the backyard quite often. It's not a large area...maybe 1500-2000 sq feet.

 

[Ohhhdear]

My hens free range in my 1/3 acre back yard. They've got access to all sorts of types of soil; forest loam, black dirt, sand, sandy gravel and I've never needed to supplement with grit. All well and good now, while it's still Autumn, but what about when the ground's frozen hard and it's covered by 3 feet of snow and ice? I suppose I should supplement with grit when they can't get anything naturally provided.... or is grit included in some of the feeds, like Layena or Kent?