feeding chickens rits crackers and scrambled eggs as snack ?

[briann107]

My chicken has lately been a finicky eater. After a rain storm my chicken crumbles were exposed to the water and all of my supply of food had to be thrown away. I tried a pellet food for her tand shes having alot of trouble with it because she has a clipped beak because she is rescued from the slaughter house. Tonight as a treat i made her scrabled eggs with rits cracker mixed in and she gobbled it up but now im sitting here thinking maybe i shouldnt of gave her rits crackers because of the sodium. I am also worried because she at it really fast and im hoping she wont get sick from eating to fast or eating to much. I think im a little paranoid but she is my first bird so i worry about her, ill go out to the coop before i go to sleep and check on her.

 

[Pork Pie]

Eggs are fine but not the crackers. As you rightly point out - the salt content is a no-no for chickens. I'd suggest you buy some more of the feed you were giving her as changes in diet is not ideal.

CT

 

[Cebarmlds]

Just one chicken is very lonely please get another they need companionship.

 

[briann107]

I have two chickens i did have three but one passed from a problem with a infection in her reproductive organs

I'm rescuing another from the slaughterhouse Thursday

to erlibrd

 

[briann107]

thank you for your feedback. Im goijgn to get her reguler food this morning because shes not a fan of the pellets but she does like it when i crush it up.

to CTKen

 

[Cebarmlds]

Hi Briann107
I'm happy to hear you have more than 1

My first hens I ever got were given to me by a man whose grandkids fed them bread and crackers all the time. Those hens would beg so I'd give them bread too as snacks not knowing it was bad for them. they got fatty liver disease and died before they should have.

Good luck to you and your chickens!

 

[RonP]

thank you for your feedback. Im goijgn to get her reguler food this morning because shes not a fan of the pellets but she does like it when i crush it up.

to CTKen

Bet she will learn to love the pellets if they were the only thing available for a day or two...

 

[appps]

I have a mildly crossed beak one so similar eating difficulties and she too struggles with anything larger than crumble, it isn't impossible but seems to take her a lot longer. If you moisten some of her pellets with some warm water and mix that with a little scrambled eggs you should find she can eat that. The warm water softens it and makes it clump and so easier to pick up and they seem to like that it is warm. I'll often give the whole flock warm softened pellets as a treat in winter.

 

[MeepBeep]

Eggs are fine but not the crackers. As you rightly point out - the salt content is a no-no for chickens

Like many of the 'do not feed' things the level of toxicity of salt is not as much of a concern as some pretend it to be moderation is key...

You would have to feed the chickens high levels of salt to cause any real harm, an occasional and moderate dosage of salt isn't any more harmful then a chicken that free ranges in a coastal area where salt is all over everything... It's all about moderation, a little extra salt here and there isn't going to cause any harm, especially if they have plenty of fresh water to wash it out of their systems...

It's when you have high levels of sale and/or limited fresh water or a diet constantly high in salt that you see problems...

This is a horrible scan but it still is readable... https://archive.org/stream/toxicityofsaltfo00mitc/toxicityofsaltfo00mitc_djvu.txt

If you gloss over it you will see that chickens given 4 grams of salt twice daily appeared to do fine, that is a lot of salt, this is about about 1.5 teaspoons of pure salt a day!

This test indicates rather clearly that 4 to 5 grams of salt per kilogram of body weight is close to the minimum lethal single dose of salt when administered in solution.

With that said and the average adult chicken being about 4.5lbs or 2kg it would take about a tablespoon (8-10 grams) sized does of pure salt to be lethal...

I highly doubt the chickens could consume enough rice crackers to get a lethal dose of salt...

 

[briann107]

Bet she will learn to love the pellets if they were the only thing available for a day or two...

It's really hard for her because she he. Clipped beck but my others love it