Do I need grit with chicken scratch if on the lawn?

[WichitaKSClucks]

Do I need to add grit to the chicken scratch I sprinkle on the lawn for my girls? Doesn't the lawn already have stuff on it to help them digest in their gizzard? I'm so new to this.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

It really depends on your soil quality. Where I am located, for example, we have a heavy clay content to the soil with little to no natural "grit" materiel for the birds to find. In previous places I have lived and kept birds there was much different soil conditions and more natural grit for the birds to pick up.
My personal take on the matter is that grit is so readily available for purchase and so cheap that *I* would rather error on the side of caution by providing grit whether I think they can find enough "out there" or not. I don't add the grit to any of their feed, rather it is offered next to the oyster shell in a dish separate from all feeds/treats.

 

[MysteriaSdrassa]

First you need to understand how a birds gizzard works. Basicly it is a super powerful muscle the contracts on itself to grind the food before it passes through the intestines for digestion. The gizzard does not digest or break down foods like the stomach does. Since a chicken does not have teeth to grind their food like we do, the gizzard does this job. Chickens seek out small stones about the size of a cherry pit and eat them where they enter the gizzard and help in the grinding of the food. Without this grit, it makes it much harder for the bird to grind scratch grains since these are generally whole grains,, not pre-ground like most pellets or mash that pretty much turns to mush with just a little added water that the birds drink. Most lawns do not have many of these small stones lying about,, so to answer your question,,, yes,, they should have grit. A bag of Cherrystone grit is fairly cheap and will last a very long time. Offer it in a small container near your normal feed as free choice.. The birds will eat as much as they need,, perhaps a lot at first if they have never had any but it will taper off as they get enough.