Can Adult Chickens Get Gout From Too Much Calcium?

[Henrik Petersson]

Without knowing more history on your chickens, to is unwise to pin their demise on any one factor. Were they offered limestone or oyster shell as a substitute for grit? Were they on prolonged antibiotics or sulfate drugs? What was their diet?... This is how FB bad advice perpetuates. Too many variables have been left out. You would see gout in 90% of the backyard chicken population if feeding commercial layer feed was the sole trigger.

I see your point, but I'm gonna answer your specific questions anyway. I have no idea whether they were given limestone or medicine in their original location, and when we bought them they were fed pellets (I don't remember what kind) and oyster shell. I don't know whether they obtained grit, or even if they were allowed to roam in a yard (they were in a barn when we bought them). Once in our yard, they were allowed to free range, was given no medication, and got pellets and oyster shell.