Feeding Bullhead Catfish, Do you see any problems?

[Antonia]

There is a pond down the road in the middle of a large pasture. The farmer that owns it says I can fish and keep all the bullheads I want.
While I don't care for catfish too much for myself, I have been fishing with my daughter and granddaughter, keeping the fish and freezing them whole on cookie sheets, then when they are frozen solid, I put them in a large bag. I want to be able to take out one or two at a time in the winter.

I take a frozen fish or two, place it in a bowl of water and microwave it. Then I give it to the chickens. Last winter I only had a few fish to do this with, but the hens LOVED it. One time I wanted to dose them all with garlic, so I mashed a few cloves into the water before I cooked it. The day was one of those horrible 20 below days we had last winter. The chickens ate the fish, drank the warm water and downed all the garlic.

So this year I am trying to get enough fish so I can do this once a week or more through the winter.
Does anyone see any problems this may cause my chickens?
Thanks!

 

[yyz0yyz0]

Sounds like a good source of protein for the chickens.

the one concern that comes to mind is farming chemicals and runoff into the pond and building up in the flesh of the fish.

does this farmer use lots of pesticides/fertilizer/weedkiller anywhere near the pond?

 

[Antonia]

There is cropland around the pasture, but the pasture is for dairy cows, so I'm hoping not too much pesticides. And the pond is a manmade one that is built up around a spring, not one that gets natural runoff.

I'm sure there is some leaching going on, probably it is inevitable in such a farmed area, just hopefully not very much.