Edible enrichment

[U_Stormcrow]

I would recommend tomatoes but I‘m not sure you are supposed to give chickens nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes). Our hens love anything with seeds (melon seeds, tomato seeds, bird seed). Rice also, I scatter it around and they will dig up their bedding to find every grain!

the whole Nightshade thing is centuries old ignorance.

Tomato leaves, in a diet solely of tomato leaves, is a problem. Give the birds a proper diet, and they will largely ignore the leaves. The fruit are just fine.

The outer bit of an UNRIPE potato skin - again a potential problem - but unless you are feeding your birds a diet of unripe potatoes...

and they will absolutely detroy pepper (fruits) of all kinds, while almost entirely avoiding the leaves.

If, otoh, you give your birds a diet of primarily "bad things", such that they must eat the bad things or starve, well... "Bad things" will happen.

The dosage, as they say, is the poison.

 

[NC_Quail]

the whole Nightshade thing is centuries old ignorance.

Tomato leaves, in a diet solely of tomato leaves, is a problem. Give the birds a proper diet, and they will largely ignore the leaves. The fruit are just fine.

The outer bit of an UNRIPE potato skin - again a potential problem - but unless you are feeding your birds a diet of unripe potatoes...

and they will absolutely detroy pepper (fruits) of all kinds, while almost entirely avoiding the leaves.

If, otoh, you give your birds a diet of primarily "bad things", such that they must eat the bad things or starve, well... "Bad things" will happen.

The dosage, as they say, is the poison.

That’s good to know, thanks. I always wondered why our hens never seemed to have trouble eating tomatoes even though they are supposedly “bad”. I like to give them partially rotten ones on occasion and let them peck the seeds out.

 

[themotleycoopchic]

My girls LOVE spaghetti squash. They eat the other varieties too, but that and pumpkin are their favorites.

 

[MaryOHK]

I’m planning our weekly grocery shop and am looking for ideas on produce that will keep my girls busy. They love cabbage and corn cobs, a bit meh about broccoli. Would love some suggestions!

They already get scratch and grubs too

My chickens LOVE grapes -- especially the red grapes - I think it has to do with the color; they also like peas, spinach, cooked rice, dried toast, squash -- if you cook squash after scraping out the good stuff for yourself (although they like that, too) give them the hulls -- they will be picked clean very quickly! Yes, half of my grocery bill goes to 'what would my chicks like!?" .. not kidding.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

My chickens LOVE grapes -- especially the red grapes - I think it has to do with the color; they also like peas, spinach, cooked rice, dried toast, squash -- if you cook squash after scraping out the good stuff for yourself (although they like that, too) give them the hulls -- they will be picked clean very quickly! Yes, half of my grocery bill goes to 'what would my chicks like!?" .. not kidding.

Be aware that red grapes are high tannin, which can at high levels cause both supression of a chickens apettite AND reduced ability to take nutrition from what they do eat. Imagine if each of your meals involved sucking on a tea bag between bites.

Like everything else, treats in moderation - 10% or less (by weight) of the daily diet. Yes, its a thumb rule, and subject to caveats - you can offer more of high moisture foods like watermelon and even grapes - but don't plan their menus around either being a consistant and significant portion of the daily intake.

 

[Alagirl]

I would recommend tomatoes but I‘m not sure you are supposed to give chickens nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes). Our hens love anything with seeds (melon seeds, tomato seeds, bird seed). Rice also, I scatter it around and they will dig up their bedding to find every grain!

the problematic part of night shades are any and all green parts (and potato seeds, which look like tiny tomatoes)

 

[PioneerChicks]

Mine love fresh garden lettuce!

 

[ChickenLady8664]

My ladies dig kale, I wrap it in a bundle with a bread tie and hang it from the run☺

Cherries and apple peels. But worms are their fave. My hunny says he turns a spade over in the ground and they come running.

 

[Poodlemum]

They loved the kale! Today we did rib bones and corn cobs from dinner. The flock block wasn’t interesting to them though