Do you feed raw meat to chickens

[Momsbusiness]

Thanks!!! That was very informative and helpful! You wrote you feed it during molting season, does it help that? What are the extra benefits of feeding meat to hens?

 

[saysfaa]

Not true. I've been feeding all my dogs and cats a 100% whole prey raw diet for over 30 years. Yet the dogs and cats walk freely and happily amongst the animals I raise that will eventually be their food without ever giving thought to harm them. They know that when the animals are alive, they are not to bother them and they may only eat what is given to them. Chickens are no different. They aren't going to taste raw chicken and get the thought "hey, I think my sister will taste just the same" seriously, they don't know that the meat they were given by the human is what is beneath the feathers of their flock.

Lol. I also rawfed my dog for over a year and she did not see live animals as food.

But I think chickens are different. I think they see everything that moves, and many things that don't move, as potential food and will try to eat it regardless of whether they have ever seen raw meat or not. What keeps them from eating each other is that the other chicken objects to being eaten - that works as long as they aren't too enticing (don't have red or shiny spots like open wounds look like). Chickens are well known for eating each other even when they have never seen meat, cooked or raw.

Same conclusion for the chickens but opposite reasoning.

 

[saysfaa]

Thanks!!! That was very informative and helpful! You wrote you feed it during molting season, does it help that? What are the extra benefits of feeding meat to hens?

Feathers are nearly entirely protein. Pellets have enough protein for when the chickens are not molting. So I figure they don't have enough for when they are molting.

I didn't think of this the first year or two. Or, maybe more accurately, wasn't willing to risk messing with their diet very much. They took a lot longer to molt those years than later years when I offered more protein during that season. I don't care how long it takes except they acted brighter-eyed and bushier-tailed when it didn't take so long.

 

[FunClucks]

Feeding meat to chickens - a great use for the freezer-burned meat in the bottom of my freezer. Trying to get better about food rotation, but I don't always get it right, so the chickens get a treat out of it. Not suitable for human consumption due to off taste/flavor, partially dried out, etc, but I boil it, and the chickens love it.

 

[CabritaChicks]

Feathers are nearly entirely protein. Pellets have enough protein for when the chickens are not molting. So I figure they don't have enough for when they are molting.

Many people say “feathers are made of protein,” but that’s actually misleading and technically false.

Feathers are made of keratin, which is a specialized structural protein—but once it forms, it becomes a tough, insoluble material that behaves nothing like body-building proteins in muscle tissue.

The distinction matters. To create keratin, a bird’s body uses amino acids derived from dietary protein in actually very reasonable amounts- the rest can actually put stress on some major organs.

• Chickens excrete nitrogen waste from protein metabolism, Excess protein leads to excess nitrogen, which the kidneys must process and excrete. Over time, this can cause kidney strain, dehydration, visceral gout (uric acid crystal buildup on organs and especially the feet). The liver helps break down amino acids and detoxifies nitrogen, but if the renal system is overloaded, this processs can become more difficult.

This is why protein is essential during molting—without it, the bird can’t produce new feathers (if it is lacking in protein, but often will then steal of its own muscle tissue, liekly from the pectoral muscles). But once keratin is formed, it becomes a dead, durable material—like fingernails—not something the body can break down and reuse.

So while protein is needed to make feathers but are not made out of protein. (along with other nutriteints and proper organ function).

In short:

• Feathers are not made of protein (in the usable sense)
• Feathers are made from keratin

Understanding this helps avoid confusion—especially when discussing bird nutrition, molting, or feather damage.

With all that said, I feed A LOT of protein to my chickens, and they eat more than average amount of critters in the jungle brush (no grassy yard, just tropical bush with leaf litter, etc).

However I just did some bloodwork on my older ones, and there is some signs of kidney inflammation. So I am cutting back slightly, as our environment is very uncontrolled over here ... oops.