Flaxseed ?

[michickenwrangler]

Who here feds flaxseed? Where to you get it from? How much do the chickens need to eat in order to get Omega 3 eggs?

Some of my customers asked about it and I said I'd look into it. There's a health food in Bay City (about 1 hr from my house) where I may be able to buy in bulk. Cheapest local price is $4.99/5 lbs at the meat market

 

[nature nut]

Seems like I read on here lately about people feeding flax seed. Some feed it ground and some feed it whole. Look back on the search and you'll find it. I do have a bag of ground flax that is 15 oz I buy at walmart for $7.93 (in the vitamin section) the dose for a adult person is 1-2 Tbsp per day so I wouldn't think you'd have to feed a chicken much a day to get the benefits of it. Two tablespoons of ground flax seeds contains 2,600mg omega 3s, 700mg omega 6s, 1,000mg omega 9s.

 

[gsim]

Quote:
YOu could buy boiled linseed oil and pour a little on top of their feed once or twice a week to add omega 3 oils. Have to read what is in it tho. I used to use it to thin oil base paint when I was a young pup, rather than turpentine.

 

[technodoll]

I buy flax seed from the local feed store where I get my chicken food...

$18.50 for a 50 lbs bag

You might want to call around to see who carries bulk flax seed, remember it's "bird quality" though and not the polished stuff you find in small jars in health food stores!

 

[urbanolive]

just found this good article on feeding flaxseed. It says whole flax is much better because it doesn't go rancid and develops a strong, muscular gizzard. Here in Asheville we can get a 50 lb bag for $50 -coming from CountrySide Naturals. I havn't yet started feeding flax because mine just started laying but I will ! http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/livestock/poultry/bba01s04.html

 

[urbanolive]

Quote:
Wow that's a good price ! I think ours is organic, people grade...

 

[OwensMom]

I feed organic ground flax seed from Costco. Don't remember the price but I only feed 2tbls. to 7 hens once a day. The flax seed that I am not using I either freeze or refrigerate since the oils go rancid-quickly. Be careful with flax seed since it can make the eggs taste fishy if you feed too much

 

[JMarch]

yep- flax seed can definitely make your eggs taste and smell fishy.

 

[wishful]

I thought free-ranging chickens have higher quantities of omega-3 in their eggs naturally from what they eat? Is that not true, or it is true but giving them the flax seeds gives the eggs even more omega-3?

 

[rosawoodsii]

Free range chickens just have better health and better eggs all around. By free range, though, I mean having the run of the place, and not just a fenced in area that they've denuded. During the winter it's a good idea to give them some greens. Sprouting grains is a good way to do that and a lot cheaper than buying stuff at the grocery store. Leftovers from the house are good, too, and provide lots of variety. I'm not a fan of feeding chicken to chickens, though.