Corn for heat? Is it myth or no?

[Folly's place]

Taking anything to extremes isn't the same as doing something in moderation! I'm with the folks who feed a 20% all flock diet all year, and expect our birds to eat more in cold weather, and less when free ranging in summer. I offer a small amount of scratch a couple times each week, so they come when I call, and for entertainment.
Small amounts of extra corn or fat, fine, but it's not about the chicken's needs, it's about the flock owner's need to 'do something'.
And the bacon fat stays in my kitchen!
Mary

 

[saysfaa]

Not to derail, but I'd be interested in learning more about salt (NaCl) vs sodium (Na). Does the sodium get a separate listing on the tag because it's the "bad" part of salt or is it also another ingredient?

Based on this poultydvm paper Na is tested instead of Cl because the tests more accurately indicate the amount of salt in the feed. I think that is probably why the Na is on the tags.

 

[saysfaa]

Like most animals, an extra layer of fat on a chicken means extra fat in and around the organs as well as under the skin - unlike marine animals and hibernating animals that can put a layer of fat on without putting it around the organs too. The disadvantages far outweigh the advantages to my way of thinking.

 

[Folly's place]

Fat hens are prone to fatty liver issues, often fatal. And have poorer egg production. Some body fat is good, more is not better!
Mary

 

[Sono]

The thing about corn is they will eat it even when full. When the birds are about to coop up at night if you throw some down they will gobble it up. That extra quicker energy intake is not a bad thing. The idea is you are not replacing their total diet feed with it- not feeding it during the day. Fat is great for cold, fast to burn high energy. Is it needed? Not in most cases. What people deem cold and constantly exaggerate with wind chill factors are typically not the kind of cold where supplementing fat if warranted. I'll toss black oil sunflower down on mornings below 0 F. And when it's -10 F I'll toss it in the coop as the birds usually wait for temps to warm up later in the morning to come out and feed.

We eat BLT's almost every weekend here. The fat in the pan is absorbed into oats then fed to the birds. There is no concern of elevated salt. This salt concern is another perpetuated myth. What people need to remember is the salt studies were intended to be lethal. The birds literally had to be force fed salt (sodium solution injected into crops) as they would not consume it at those insane levels. Chickens are no more sensitive to salt than any other animal. We all die if force fed incredible amounts of it. The studies made sense to a point as in effects of salt, benefits at specific dosage. All animals need salt. Where it went off the rail was finding the lethal intake requirement. But you'll see all feeds have 1% sodium and that's the result of these often misconstrued studies.

Thanks for this. Agreed, salt in high doses isnt good butfor the occasional addition it shouldnt hurt... not enough salt concentrated in one feeding as this would just be a random "snack" in the winters since we dont cook sausage and bacon often. We have septic so I usually dump the grease in the burn pile where it could be added to the feed once in a blue moon during the cold spells. Id say its never more than 1/4 cup of grease and added to feed or scratch shared between 12 hens.

 

[saysfaa]

The thing about corn is they will eat it even when full. When the birds are about to coop up at night if you throw some down they will gobble it up. That extra quicker energy intake is not a bad thing...

Why do you want them to eat more when they are full?

Doesn't the regular feed have corn in it? What is the difference between that corn and the extra corn?

 

[Kanekoded]

Corn is a carb and therefore will increase a bird's energy. It's that increased energy that keeps a bird a little warmer because it keeps the bird moving...the corn itself, doesn't raise the body temp.

With that said, there are better sources of carbs out there with more nutritional value than corn - which, is why I don't bother feeding my birds corn.

 

[EIEIO Funny Farm]

Not to derail, but I'd be interested in learning more about salt (NaCl) vs sodium (Na). Does the sodium get a separate listing on the tag because it's the "bad" part of salt or is it also another ingredient?

I’m Interested as well

 

[GardenDmpls]

It's that increased energy that keeps a bird a little warmer because it keeps the bird moving

But at night they will be sleeping, not running around.

 

[Kanekoded]

But at night they will be sleeping, not running around.

Then I guess corn isn't going to keep them warmer at night. Here's a little more info regarding the subject:

https://chickenandchicksinfo.com/can-chickens-eat-whole-corn/