black oil sunflower seeds with shells on?

[Akane]

Sunflower seed hulls (from black sunflowers not the stripy ones) are actually easier to digest than the hull on oats and many other grains.

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

Mine love shells and all and no problems so far

 

[Superior Chicks]

FYI,

The shell contains a beneficial oil that is good for their feathers and "sheen", and overall good health. The nut itself has the beneficial protein.

My chickens would dig thru a haystack to get one BOSS! Definately feed with shell on.

Ma

 

[erthymom2]

when i feed my hatched chicks, i grind up BOSS and nautrual oatmeal in my magic bullet chopper and add it to their medicated feed. never had a problem with it and they love the mix...i spoil my baby's somethin' fierce!!

 

[bantiesrule]

Quote:
Mine head there all the time too. I don't know if you have chickadees where you are; but if you watch them at the feeder, they fly down, grab a seed and then go up in a tree and shell it. They only eat the seed and not the shell, droping that to the ground. Look closly under your feeder, alot of the "spilled" seed are really just the shell. And the chickens still go nuts for it.

 

[princess araucana]

Great info! I had no idea about the difference between the black and the stripy ones!
I feel very safe giving then some BOSS now! I had heard how good they are for the chickers, now I can feel good about it too.

yes, nemo I got tongue tied with the shelled unshelled shells!

now I can say my chickens eat seed shells by the sea shore!

(live in RI)

 

[GardenGirl]

My chickies go nuts for them. They run right to the area where we feed the birds and steal them. The little budgies are probably like "Ahh, birdzillas!!!!"

 

[FisherMOM]

after reading this, on my next trip to the feed store, I'm buying my flock some BOSS.

 

[farmerbrown]

We grow our own BOSS and striped sunflowers. It just gets mixed into there grain mix. We do not crack them for the bigger birds but we do crack them for our babies.

The striped sunflower seeds are fine fore them. They have a bit less of a nutritional valve but they digest them just fine. We only planted BOSS and just save some to plant the next year. One year one of my kids helped me out by planting a bunch of stripped ones.

 

[AK_Button_Mama]

I know my local walmart sell busted up BOSS as a wild bird feed. and its like 20 bucks a 50 pound bag. im getting some next visit