Avacodos

[Courtney R]

i was feeding my chickens avacodos for quite a while... then i figured out that i am not supposed to feed them that. Avacodos can be toxic to chickens, but my chickens didnt have anything wrong with them though.. but i woodnt feed it to babies. i stopped feeding them that after i found out though, but they did love it, i dont wanna take any chances..

 

[triplepurpose]

I've fed avocados to chickens for over two decades--I have an avocado orchard. I have never observed any ill effects from them, before or after I heard of their "toxicity" for the first time a couple years ago. Seems to me avocados are a nice source of calories and nutrients with their oily flesh and I'm reluctant to waste such a resource. The chickens eat them and that's good enough for me--and BTW, all the wild birds (including wild chickens) seem to enjoy gorging on the fallen fruit as well! I keep hearing people say occasionally that avocados are "toxic" for chickens but I have never been able to find any solid sources for this info. I even asked a friend who is a vet and he was unaware of this being an issue. If it makes one feel better not to, then by all means, but I myself am going to keep ignoring the "warnings" and taking advantage of this free feed resource at least until someone cites specific info as to the harmfulness--which BTW I'd be very curious to read if anyone has a link!

Cheers!

 

[Courtney R]

yeah thats y i said it CAN b toxic. cuz i fed mine avacodos too and they loved them and r perfectly healthy...but still u never kno

 

[triplepurpose]

yeah thats y i said it CAN b toxic. cuz i fed mine avacodos too and they loved them and r perfectly healthy...but still u never kno

So, not to beat this one to death, but y do you think they CAN b toxic, then? Who told you this, or where did you read it? I am honestly, sincerely curious, because I've only ever heard people hint about it and parrot each other, but no one ever told me exactly why or what the poisonous effects are supposed to be. You're right, you never kno--until you find an actual source of factual information about it... and I can't seem to...

 

[Courtney R]

well... there r different things that say wat ur chickens shoodnt eat, http://citygirlfarming.com/Chickens/ThingsChickensShouldNotEat.html , thats one site that says so. but i am w/ u on that cuz my chickens r okay from eating them, also it says "can be" i dont wanna take any chances http://blog.mcmurrayhatchery.com/2011/10/04/feeding-your-chickens-table scraps/ , i was trying to find a site that says its ok but the ones i c say no, but i dont thnk that there is any evidence to say that it has killed any chickens....

 

[triplepurpose]

Ok, interesting. The Mcmurray link you posted actually provided a name for the alleged mystery toxin: Persin. However, they also say that it is found specifically in the skin and the pit of the avocado--not, apparently, the flesh. Wikipedia says this about Persin:

"In birds (which are particularly sensitive to the avocado toxin), the symptoms are: increased heart rate, myocardial tissue damage, labored breathing, disordered plumage, unrest, weakness, and apathy. High doses cause acute respiratory syndrome (asphyxia), with death approximately 12 to 24 hours after consumption."

So the issue is not the flesh, only the skin and the pit. Which I have never seen a chicken eat, anyway! Very informative.

Nice to finally get the clear answer I've been looking for!

Cheers, Courtney!

 

[Courtney R]

thnx, i guess, and people post stuff on wikepedia, u cant trust it, oh and the skin is still part of the avocado

just saying

 

[triplepurpose]

I don't always trust Wikipedia either, but in this case, their info is corroborated by other sources, including the ASPCA for example... I never take wikipedia info to the bank without fact checking.

Yes, the pit and skin are part of the fruit, if you want to split hairs or whatever, but not the part that any animal I know of eats. Do you eat the pit and skin? I assume not, because they are bitter, gritty, hard to chew, and disgusting. The rats in my orchard that eat the fallen fruit don't eat the pit and skin. My dog, who loved avos, never ate the pit or skin, though she gorged on whole avocados at every opportunity. My cats eat the fallen avos all the time, or steal the ones we put out for sale at the farmstand, and--you guessed it--they don't eat the pit or skin either! Throw a whole split avo into your chicken coop and you can watch the chickens eat everything but...lo and behold...the pit and skin. Wonder of wonders.

So it seems to me all considered it's really a non-issue, one of those theoretical disasters that doesn't happen to normal people in real life. Although I do agree it's not a bad thing to be fully informed. So hopefully anyone reading your thread and wondering will be as glad as I was to find some info on this!

 

[Imp]

Here's some reputable information about the Persin in avocados. As it says chickens seem more resistant to its effects. And that's in line with lots of posts here that people's chickens have eaten them without ill effect.

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/211102.htm

Imp

 

[Courtney R]

oh well i eat the flesh or wateva of the "avo" and throw the skin and seed in there and they eat it, and also the rats here climb the avo tree and mostly eat 'The Skin' and barely eat the flesh of it