Feeding chickens CAT FOOD!?!?!?!

[flaflocker]

I had cats before I had chickens. My cats rarely clean their wet food cans out completely. Once the chickens found the cans they went nuts and pecked them clean as a whistle. Since then I have used the chickens as a clean up tool and occasionally given them their own can. I do not give them cat food that has chicken in it and since my cats hate beef most of the cans are some form of seafood. I have not tried the chickens with dry food as the cats eat it over time. I do give them scrambled eggs if any are left on the table after breakfast.

I have my first hen going through molt now and she likes the cat food but she really perked up after I went to the bait store and bought crickets for the flock to share. She ate a bunch and looks and seems to feel better. I also give them freeze dried meal worms but mostly use those for a training tool (cooping time). I will be looking into raising meal worms later.

If we have any left over ground beef and it doesn't get used in a week the chickens get it. But 90% of their food is chicken crumbles, mixed with cracked corn; black oil sunflower seeds and wild bird feed. I am trying to learn to grow oat sprouts as I can no longer free range due to bobcat problems, but the first batch was slow to sprout and soured. Learning by doing!

 

[Red1984]

I use it for chickens that are getting ready to lay, and to finish my "meaties."

Oh, and sometimes my DH eats it:
This from my journal:

July 27, 2007
. . . Tonight, I was putting away groceries and preparing to go and bring in the chickens. Roger was rummaging around, looking for a snack. I heard him munching something; he said, “This stuff tastes like cow food!” That’s what he usually says about the stuff I eat, so I had to narrow it down: “Which stuff?” I asked. “On the table, your ‘Naturals,’” he said. I started howling with laughter. “That’s because it’s the dry cat food for the chickens!” I cried, gasping for breath.
I shall never let him forget this.

I don't feed it to anyone on a regular basis.

 

[tigger19687]

I tried to see if mine ate the dry kibble but they just looked at me like I was stupid.
Not that I wanted to give it, just was curious if I had to at some point

 

[sawilliams]

I give mine cat food from time to time, it's certainly not a regular treat. After reading out in a post I kept it in the back of my mind and when i accidentally ran myself out of chicken feed i have then cat food untill I could get to the store. I loved it. Just the other night i gave then some as a treat while they were free ranging just becuase it was closer then running to the garage for the meal worms.

I'm excited for the idea of using it during molt though. I'm currenlty switching my flock to all flock feed as we have a mixed ages right now and are hoping for a rooster. A few of my hens have feather issues during laying, they just lose some of their neck and chest feathers. They grow in during only but fall back out when laying starts. I never really pinned this aa a protein issue but i guess I should have. Anyways i noticed my mama who hatched eggs a few weeks age and had been on strictly chick feed for about 2 weeks was growing her feathers back, understandably she isn't laying right now though. After leting get back out with the flock I started the switch to all flock (still have some layer to use up) and have started to notice all my bald girls are starting to fill in, plus laying is a little better. I deffinatly hope giving then cat food a little more often will help with their feathers in the future

 

[tigger19687]

If you don't get a Roo, look in Craigs List. Here there are now a bunch of ads about free Roo's. All the Spring "city" folk are not hearing the Crow LOL

 

[CLAMCC]

My DH who has Alzheimer's goes for the "salmon pate" aka salmon cat food which is in a bowl on the floor next to the crunchy snack. He makes a mess. I checked with Chewy and they said it wouldn't hurt him. So when I can't keep him away from the cat food, I serve him his own fresh can with crackers and he's happy as a clam at high tide.
Oh, and when the cats have not cleaned the bowl, 10 chickens clean it up in about 10 seconds. Sadly, I had not read these comments until after one of my oldest chickens started molting and is now almost totally feathered again, I read another comment that scared me out of letting them clean the bowls, but today they get a special treat.