Cayenne Pepper - Got it - Now what!

[Kung Foo Chicken]

Went from 4 to 5 eggs. I put it in their food, water and sprinkled around.
They should be pooing salsa but, not much if any change.
They did shoot out a few worms at these high doses.

 

[mdbokc]

I have never thought that the cayenne pepper is the prime reason mine lay as I am irregular in using it weekly or so. And then it is only in the winter or a time when I think other little critters might be drawn to the food as I vaguely recall reading that cayenne (besides supposedly helping them lay) helps keep non-chickens out of the feed. And that is my real goal. Originally, I also thought about it as an assist to deworming (you would get to keep the eggs) as well but I am now using Verm-X every 6 - 8 weeks and happy with the results.

 

[Cara]

Dust inside of underwear.

 

[harryg6167]

After reading these post yesterday I bought a jar of cayenne
when we went to grocery store. I use laying crumble so I
sprinkled it all over them and mixed it up befor I poured it
into the feeders. Feed had a pretty red tint to it.
Went out this morning and my bantams who have not
produced an egg in weeks had an egg waiting for us.
Now maybe they were fixing to start laying anyways
but cayenne yesterday= egg this morning.

 

[NYREDS]

I put about a teaspoon in the flour mixture when I make fried chicken. otherwise I don't think it's of any benefit for chickens. Think about it. Commercial poultry farms want maximum production from their birds right? If Cayenne boosted egg production don't you think it would be included in commercial poultry feed?

 

[Cara]

Commercial hens are in climate and light controlled facilities.

 

[JimWWhite]

For the past two or three months during all this miserably wet, cold weather we've been having here in the Carolinas we've been mixing up a mush every morning and giving it to our Gals. We take about a quarter cup of sugar (for energy), leftover potatoes, macaroni, beans, or whatever, and then add a heaping teaspoon of cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes to that. We do all this in a 1 gallon pitcher. Then I add about 1/2 gallon of very hot tap water to that an stir it in. I take the pitcher down to their run where I keep their layer pellets in a big plastic trash can with a lid and I mix in a scoop of the pellets. Then I pour it out in a large saucer we keep in the run. It has the consistency of thick oatmeal. Then I open the coop up and get out of the way because someone is likely to get hurt when they come a running for their mush. The whole gallon of mush is gone with fifteen minutes and they squawk for more...

Anyways, we have 19 Gold Comets, all about a year old now and since the first of November we've been averaging 17 - 18 eggs a day from our flock without fail. I know the GC's are great layers but I just feel what we've been doing has given them a boost during this cold winter we've been having and they seem to have responded. And I do believe the cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes has played a big part in that too.

 

[NYREDS]

Show me a properly conducted double blind study that supports the idea that Cayenne Pepper increases egg production & I will accept it. But when someone says "I give my chickens Cayenne & they lay lots of eggs" all that proves is that those particular chickens lay lots of eggs. It does not prove that the Cayenne has anything to do with it. The fact that [no disrespect intended] your Grandma said Cayenne makes the chickens lay better also does not make it so.
Give me two 50,000 bird flocks from the same strain, of the same age, raised in exactly the same conditions except that one flock gets Cayenne. Then if there's a statistically significant difference in production you'll have proven something.

 

[Cara]

Quote:
If you don't want to try it, don't

 

[NYREDS]

Quote:
If you don't want to try it, don't

Oh my aren't you the clever one?