Chickens ate apples... and maybe seeds.

[Nevaschickens]

Gonna be honest I gave my hens apples. I didn't know that the seeds weren't good and I'm pretty sure they ate them. Will they be okay? I'm kinda scared.

 

[pogmobum]

I used to have a small apple tree growing in my chickens fenced in area every summer they would be hoping up and down eating what they could reach and anything that fell off, it never did them any harm at all. Then we got goats and the apple tree was no more lol

 

[Nevaschickens]

I used to have a small apple tree growing in my chickens fenced in area every summer they would be hoping up and down eating what they could reach and anything that fell off, it never did them any harm at all. Then we got goats and the apple tree was no more lol

Phew! That's a big relief... Thanks so much!

 

[Soltaria]

From what I've read, the cyanide in the seeds is very minute and they would have to eat a lot of them to suffer any ill effects. Probably best not to risk it in the future though just in case.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Wow, glad I found this thread...every fall, we make cider, often starting out with 10-20 bushels of apples...I was thinking that the spent "apple mush" would be a great chicken snack.

Sounds like if I am going to try that, I'll have to pick out the seeds first. That sounds like quite the project, but I guess there's only so much I could feed them at a time anyway (unless I freeze some to sort through later).

 

[pdirt]

Don't worry about a few seeds. They would need to eat a lot if apples. For an adult human, a lethal dose of apple seeds is about a half cup. And the seeds would need to be crushed and then eaten very soon, else the cyanide evaporates. If I did my math correct, a 5 lbs chicken would need to eat about 3/4 tsp of apple seeds, which is quite a few.

 

[Arielle]

I ate wole apples out of the orchard and these days I purposely chew and swallow the seeds-- the cyanide is not free cyanide but is in a compound. IMO it is like carbon monoxide versus carbon dioxide. Our brething system is based off of sensitivity to CO2, but CO will kill us quickly.

I have heard raw flax seeds are lethal too-- I eat a lot every day and I'm still here, so I am starting to not beleive that these foods are as dangerous to eat as is perpetuated.

A valid study would be worth looking at.

 

[Nevaschickens]

I ate wole apples out of the orchard and these days I purposely chew and swallow the seeds-- the cyanide is not free cyanide but is in a compound. IMO it is like carbon monoxide versus carbon dioxide. Our brething system is based off of sensitivity to CO2, but CO will kill us quickly.

I have heard raw flax seeds are lethal too-- I eat a lot every day and I'm still here, so I am starting to not beleive that these foods are as dangerous to eat as is perpetuated.

A valid study would be worth looking at.

Good to know!

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Thanks folks. I can't stand the idea of letting all that apple goodness go to waste, but the idea of sorting through piles of apple pulp trying to extract the seeds does sound a bit crazy.

I'll limit their daily intake and freeze some of the leftovers for good winter treats.