Flax seed?

[Nostalchic]

Does anyone feed whole flax seed to their chickens? Anyone know why I should or shouldn't? I have a 50 pound bag of it, long story.

 

[gingerpeach22]

I too have a fifty pound bag of flax. I used to grind it for my horse which got 1/4 cup a day during winter. I keep a cup of whole seeds in the coop and every once in awhile a bunch gets scattered on the shavings. They enjoy scratching around the shavings of course, and it gives them something to discover. I would have to put flax seed in the search box above to see what others say about it. I'm guessing that it has benefits like sunflower seeds - beneficial fat/oil.

 

[woodmort]

I buy it in 5 lb sacks and mix one sack with 100lbs of layer. Don't figure it's necessary to grind it, that's what gizzards are for.

 

[HenThymes]

I feed whole flax to all of our horses and chickens. It has omega-3 benefits for the eggs, excellent for plumage, great for healthy beak and nail growth as well. Flax contains like 30% fat which is very beneficial for our halter horses too. It definitely won't hurt them. I just sprinkle some on top of feed every few days.

 

[noodleroo]

I soak my flax seeds for about 3 hours in twice as much water as seeds. It makes the seeds sort of give off a jelly like substance. You can feed it to them mixed with feed or just like this. Mine love it. I use it for a treat.

If you are going to eat the flax seeds, I'd recommend soaking and then running them in a blender for about 20 seconds or so to break up the seeds. I believe it makes the nutrition a little more bio-abailable. Chickens can grind them in their gizzards, but you can grind them first for them if you want.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I feed mine flax seeds too. It is not their favorite. They seem to have a "dosage" they will eat, like with split peas. If I go over a certain amount in the feed, they just leave it.

Wheat on the other hand, they will inhale no matter how much I give them (within reason).