black watermelon seeds for chickens?

[Peach2u]

This is not my material. It belongs to this website below. But it is good info.

http://suite101.com/article/feeding-chickens-what-to-feed-what-not-to-feed-a362324

Feeding Chickens: What to Feed, What Not to Feed

Chickens will eat almost anything. That doesn't mean you can feed them just anything! Find out the best foods to feed, and those that should never be fed.
Posted by Cynthia McBride | Last updated: Mar 25, 2013

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• Free Range Backyard Chickens​

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Keeping chickens in your backyard has become extremely popular. And why not? Chickens are easy to care for, inexpensive to keep, provide excellent insect and weed control for your yard, wonderful manure for your garden, and of course, delicious eggs! Chickens are wonderful pets as well!
One of the best things about keeping chickens is that they eat everything! Well, just about everything. Chickens will ingest just about everything, so do be careful about what you put within their reach. Do not make the mistake of feeding them out of a styrofoam container, as they will eat the container as well!

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The main thing to remember about chicken diets is that chickens need about 16% protein in their diets, if they are to be good egg layers. Fish meal is an excellent addition to their food to provide protein, but if you feed a commercial blend, either mash or pellets, all of the nutrients should be provided.
Free range chickens will get plenty of protein in the insects that they find, but remember, once winter hits, they will not be enjoying the vast array of protein-providing insects. Always have food available to your chickens, and of course, always have fresh water, especially in hot climates.
Feeding Baby Chicks
Chicks should be started immediately on chick starter crumbles. Chick starter food is available in several different brands, and you can research any one of them, but most of them are of excellent quality. Several months later, when your chickens are about to start laying eggs, you will want to put them on a diet specifically for layers. You can find a good chicken food made for laying hens at the local feed store. Read the label and ask for advice from a knowledgeable clerk. These foods will be in either pellet or crumble (mash) form.
When chickens are about 8 weeks old, you can start feeding them vegetable scraps from your kitchen. They will very much appreciate the greenery! Chickens will eat just about everything, but there are a few things that you would be wise not to feed to your chickens. Do not feed your birds anything moldy, salty, oily or spoiled. Sure, they may actually eat it, but do you really want to chance having your flock get sick or die? Also be certain that they can not get into anything poisonous or otherwise harmful if they roam all over your yard. You should definitely not use any chemicals on your lawn if you will have chickens roaming on it. Not only could this be harmful to the chickens, but do you really want to be eating eggs that contain these chemicals?
Foods Never to Feed to Chickens

• Avocado Pits or Skins (there is a low level of toxicity)
• Onions or Garlic (will make the eggs taste odd)
• Green Peppers
• Dry Dog or Cat Food They will find it and get into it, but it is not good for them)
• Citrus (can cause egg production to drop)
• Candy, Sugar or Chocolate (not good for their systems)
• Raw Eggs (chickens will develop a taste for eggs, and will start eating the eggs!)
• Dried or Raw/Under Cooked Beans (contain a substance that is toxic to fowl)
• Raw Green Potato Peelings (toxic)
• Anything Salty (too much salt can cause salt poisoning and be deadly—no salted popcorn!)

Also, be careful about feeding corn during hot weather. Most scratch feeds (mixture of grains) contain corn, but if you live in a very hot climate, you will not want your chickens eating corn during the hot weather, as the corn will raise their body temperatures. In very hot weather, you do not want your chickens getting any hotter than they might already be struggling with.
Foods That are Good to Feed to Chickens

• Watermelon and cantaloupe seeds and flesh
• Cereal (Not anything too sugary)
• Live Crickets or Meal worms (purchased at a pet store)
• Sunflower Seeds (Unsalted, with the shell on or off)
• Strawberries or Berries of any kind (will be a favorite of your chickens)
• Oatmeal (Dried or cooked)
• Meat Scraps (can be fed to your chickens in moderation, but nothing too fatty or salty)
• Flowers (not treated with pesticides )
• Plain yogurt (a real treat, and very good for their digestive tracts)
• Bread (convenient to feed as a treat, but not much nutritional value in it)
• Greens of any type (especially good for penned chickens)
• Lettuce, broccoli or cauliflower.

A beneficial and varied diet for chickens that will guarantee good egg production will include a quality commercial food made especially for laying hens, some scratch feed (mixed grains) and any healthy vegetable scraps or foods from the above list of good foods to feed. If your chickens are free range, they will complement this diet with nutritious insects and plant material. You will also notice that free range chickens will require less food during the summer months, when they are getting more plants and insects.
Chicken feed is quite affordable, but giving your flock the best diet will ensure that you have healthy chickens which provide you with high quality eggs.​

 

[Bawc]

And don't forget pumpkins, both seeds and flesh are beneficial. I grow a pumpkin variety popular in Europe called styrian and the girls go wild!

 

[kkidsmom]

ok, my girls love green peppers especially the seeds. So Why not green peppers? What's the reason?

 

[PrairieChickens]

The seeds are the chickens' favorite part, in my experience. Our watermelon crop failed last year because of the heat and drought, so we ended up feeding all of the unripe fruit to the chickens. They suffered no ill effects from the feast. That's not to say a chicken COULDN'T have a problem with eating that much watermelon and the seeds, but it certainly hasn't been a problem with our flock.

 

[cookieman]

The little rooster,they called KIKIRIKES they come south America.

 

[Peach2u]

Potatoes, tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, eggplant, tomatillos, tamarios, pepinos, pimentos, paprika, and cayenne peppers are classified as nightshade foods

Substances found in all nightshades are called alkaloids

Atropine , Scopolamine and Solanine are the toxins in nightshade plants.

The Atropine side of the family makes
cholinergic antagonists causing depression of the parasympathetic
system , while the Solanine producers make cholinesterase inhibitors ,
causing stimulation of the para sympathetic branch of the central
nervous system .

In other words if chickens eat too many seeds or greens from the nightshade family. It can cause them to lose muscle control" Twitching or unable to move" or organs shut down.

So if feeding them tomatoes and peppers make sure the seeds and stems are removed. They contain the highest amounts of these compounds.

 

[kkidsmom]

That is interesting. On the Texas thread a few weeks ago it was suggested that many old timers feed hot peppers to induce laying. I gave mine bell peppers and jalopeno as well as red pepperflakes. They loved them. Now they started laying this week. I don't imagine I have over fed these things though.

 

[Becca J]

So far all my chickens appear to love them. when I put the cantalope peals are put out, I always try to include the seedy goop in a separate plate. They always want that plate first! mmmmmm! yummy!

 

[Wonky Pronk]

What a great idea. Thanks!

 

[Peach2u]

Yea my chickens get pumpkin over load during Halloween time. First they get the guts, then the carved pumpkin afterwards "if it isn't moldy" Then I get family and friends pumpkins for them.