chicken treats

[rachaelalexia]

whats the best thing for giving as a treat to chickens?

 

[terryg]

The most important thing is to make sure that their overall diet is good and you don't overdo the treats. Backyard hens have multitudes of problems from being too fat! Your hens should get most of their food from laying hen pellets. Don't feed treats unless the crop is full - I just did a necropsy on a friend's bird that died suddenly. It had an impacted crop - all grass and treats from the compost bucket. I also know of a hen that had an impacted crop from sunflower seeds with shells still on them - that's all that was in the crop, which means that the hen had access to too many treats and wasn't eating her basic food. A hen will skip the pellets if she thinks that she'll be getting "candy" later.
That said, hens love treats and its fun to feed them. Go with vegetables, like tomatoes, berries, chopped bit of greens and fruits. Feed hulled sunflower seeds in moderation. A few stale crackers, etc. crumbled, are fine. Mealworms are expensive and unnecessary, especially if your hens get out in the yard at all. But, they like them! My hens spend most of their day in a pen, and I have a compost pile in there for them. It's filled with good things to shred and worms to eat. See it here:
http://www.hencam.com/henblog/2012/03/compost-in-the-chicken-run/

 

[WI FarmChick]

The most important thing is to make sure that their overall diet is good and you don't overdo the treats. Backyard hens have multitudes of problems from being too fat! Your hens should get most of their food from laying hen pellets. Don't feed treats unless the crop is full - I just did a necropsy on a friend's bird that died suddenly. It had an impacted crop - all grass and treats from the compost bucket. I also know of a hen that had an impacted crop from sunflower seeds with shells still on them - that's all that was in the crop, which means that the hen had access to too many treats and wasn't eating her basic food. A hen will skip the pellets if she thinks that she'll be getting "candy" later.
That said, hens love treats and its fun to feed them. Go with vegetables, like tomatoes, berries, chopped bit of greens and fruits. Feed hulled sunflower seeds in moderation. A few stale crackers, etc. crumbled, are fine. Mealworms are expensive and unnecessary, especially if your hens get out in the yard at all. But, they like them! My hens spend most of their day in a pen, and I have a compost pile in there for them. It's filled with good things to shred and worms to eat. See it here:
http://www.hencam.com/henblog/2012/03/compost-in-the-chicken-run/

I just wanted to add.... if feeding anything other than your store bought feed then they will need free access to grit also.

 

[rachaelalexia]

thank you, all off this is easy access for them and have all they need, just wanted to see if they're any treats that chicken especially like, we let our chickens roam around the garden too as we have quite a big garden

 

[WI FarmChick]

Here is the BYC "Treat Chart" will this help?

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/chicken-treat-chart-the-best-treats-for-backyard-chickens

 

[calvincoop]

I buy treats off of Amazon. the brand name is happy hen treats and they have mealworm frenzy and sunflower sensation. my chickens love them. They also love any kind of pasta. moderation is very important because they will get an impacted crop.

 

[hiddenflock]

My chickens love oats, kale, and earthworms.(remember not to over do it!)