eating poop

[snvaugh]

My hen keeps eating chicken poop - what can I do?

 

[MissPrissy]

They have eaten worse. It is normal behavior.

 

[SillyChick]

Yup - Chickens will try to eat almost anything! There have been news from farmers that they find lots of items in their chickens' stomach - from erasers to car keys! I agree with MissPrissy - it's normal behavior and they should be fine.

Good luck!

 

[luvmychicknkids]

Glad I am not the only one! I kinda figured it was alright (and normal) but I try to discourage it....pick them up and say "oh sweetie, look at this really cool bug".....but they just go right back to it. Defiant little monsters.

 

[Rte.66_chicks]

It can't be as bad as the styrofoam that my former flock loved to eat-the stuff that's too big to fit in the garbage can, so is set to the side until pick-up day. It has to be put somewhere completely out of their reach. I would really like to know why they ate it, but don't suppose I will ever really know what's going on in little chicken brains.

 

[Scrambled Egg]

When dogs eat poop they are missing vitamins and minerals from their diet, wouldn't it be the same thing with chickens?

 

[MissPrissy]

Not neccessarily. Chickens in days gone by where left to forage and they pick out the undigested things from poop.

Many sustainable living farms rotate their cattle and pigs through feilds in tandom. Then mobile chicken tractors are brought in for the chickens to harvest and recoup all of the undigested feed and to scratch through helping it to decompose quicker.

 

[Scrambled Egg]

Chickens in days gone by where left to forage and they pick out the undigested things from poop.

why does that answer make me feel smarter and more nauseated at the same time?!!! Thank you Superwoman, lol!!

 

[seminolewind]

You might want to put some scratch down, it probably taste better than poop. I use horse sweet feed for scratch.

 

[Wynette]

Actually, some dogs eat dog poop for other reasons rather than a deficiency in their diet. I adopted a dog that was extremely neglected (left in a basement, tied to a post to die). All he had to eat was his own poop. It's now a habit. We discourage him all the time, and supervise ALL his outdoor time, we've tried all sorts of supplements, and nothing has worked. Good thing he's the sweetest dog we've ever owned!