Composting chicken run

[chickenlittle21]

But isn't this part of composting for fertilizer? Small heads of cabbage hung for fun. Vegetable peels. That sort?

but the chickens will eat the scraps and could possibly get salmonella.

 

[ChickNanny13]

I used to feed veggies/fruits but not anymore ... My last batch of BO were not gaining, tested for worm, negative. I was reminded by members no more than 10% should be "treats". I stopped all "treats", only FR fermented for "meals" and tossed out a handful of crumbles at close up. They gained weight and didn't seem to miss their "treats". It's hard not to feed them "treats"

 

[chickenlittle21]

you would have to watch the scraps very closely to make sure nothing else went in their. Did you know that white potatoes are toxic to chickens.

 

[gtaus]

Does anyone clean the poop boards into a bucket and then toss the bucket contents into the run?
Also Do you throw kitchen scraps in the run? I worry my girls will eat too much vegetation and not enough flock raiser crumbles if I have a lot of vegetables and grass and leaves and weeds for composting.

I use a dry deep bedding of wood chips in my coop. I don't have a poop board under the roosts. All the poop disappears into the deep bedding. If I notice any build up of poop under the roosts, then I throw some scratch feed in that area. The chickens scratch through that area and all the poop vanishes like magic. So far, for the past 5 months, that has worked for me. If you have a bucket of poo, I would suggest spreading it around the chicken run so the chickens can work it into the litter. Too much poo in any one space may get smelly.

I don't let my chickens free range, but I do dump all my grass clippings and now, leaves, into the chicken run. I also give them kitchen scraps. My chickens prefer almost any kind of food over their commercial feed. Perhaps they would have a better diet if they ate only commercial feed, but perhaps they would lay more eggs more consistently if confined to a battery cage like the commercial factories of the past. I prefer to let my chickens pick through our kitchen scraps, grass clippings, and leaves and whatever eggs I get is fine with me. Having said that, I have 10 pullets and it's just the wife and me in the household. So we don't need 10 eggs per day.

 

[gtaus]

no scraps with chickens! feeding chickens scraps is one of the most likely ways to give them salmonella.

I know there is a debate over feeding chickens kitchen scraps, but I have never heart of any concerns of salmonella. Are you sure about that?

I feed my chickens kitchen scraps all the time, but have never worried about feeding them something my wife and I just ate for lunch and/or supper. OK, no salts, sugars, etc... but almost everything else is fine with me.

 

[chickenlittle21]

I know there is a debate over feeding chickens kitchen scraps, but I have never heart of any concerns of salmonella. Are you sure about that?

I feed my chickens kitchen scraps all the time, but have never worried about feeding them something my wife and I just ate for lunch and/or supper. OK, no salts, sugars, etc... but almost everything else is fine with me.

say one of your scraps is meat, it can give chickens salmonella even if the animal did not have it.

 

[gtaus]

Did you know that white potatoes are toxic to chickens.

No, I did not know that white potatoes are toxic to chickens. As far as I knew, you would not give chickens green potatoes, which are also toxic to humans. If a potato in the ground is exposed to sunlight, it turns green, and is not fit for eating by humans or chickens.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

No, I did not know that white potatoes are toxic to chickens. As far as I knew, you would not give chickens green potatoes, which are also toxic to humans. If a potato in the ground is exposed to sunlight, it turns green, and is not fit for eating by humans or chickens.

You have it right. White potatoes aren't toxic to chickens. The green skinned ones (caused by exposure to sunlight when they're growing) are toxic to people and animals....unless they're cooked.

This thread has taken an interesting turn towards the pearl clutching concern-mongering.

 

[gtaus]

say one of your scraps is meat, it can give chickens salmonella even if the animal did not have it.

I give meat scraps to my chickens all the time. I figure if it was good enough to eat for me and my wife, then it's OK for the chickens.

 

[aart]

say one of your scraps is meat, it can give chickens salmonella even if the animal did not have it.

Rotten food scraps/compost can cause botulism but not likely salmonella.
Where are you getting this information?