Free Ranging+Shrubs=Bad idea?

[wichix411]

Today was the first time my 8 13 week old pullets free ranged (because i was actually home to watch them for their first time out). They really seemed to be interested in the row of shrubs along the garage. Like they try eating leaves from it. The name of the shrub is "Cotoneaster". Does anybody know if this shrub is harmful to chickens? I really want to free range them more but i can't ALWAYS be standing there shoo-ing them away from the shrubs. Any ideas? Thanks so much!

 

[Mahlzeit]

I believe there is a sticky on top of the feed and water section showing what is good and bad for your chickens.

 

[chookchick]

I wouldn't be too worried about it. Chickens seem to be pretty smart about what they can and cannot eat--they've been free-ranging for centuries! Nothing that I know about cotoneaster is poisonous, and it should grow back fast enough to survive their plucking. Just make sure they always have layer food available so they aren't too hungry.

 

[wichix411]

Mahlzeit-the sticky is just a comment section for the treat chart.
and chookchick-they are still on flockraiser because they havent started laying yet and arent even close. i googled it and it said the berries were toxic, but it didn't say anything about leaves.

 

[Imp]

Here's one of the lists of toxic plants. I don't see cotoneaster, but I just glanced. I agree with chookchick, I'd not worry about it.

Imp


http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/htm/bc/ttox04.htm

 

[wichix411]

I'm a first time chickener so I was kinda worried. And I heard that chickns somehow know what's good and bad for them, but still had to ask.

Anybody else have any comments/answers?

 

[gritsar]

I don't worry about it. Chickens go feral all the time with no one to watch over them to make sure they don't eat this or that. My flock free ranges and has been for over a year and a half now. No poisoned chickens.

 

[Akane]

Cotoneaster is in the rose family and doesn't appear to be poisonous. The berries are listed as a good food source for wild birds. Can't find much on the foliage except that one species of this plant is highly endangered due to being eaten by herbivores such as sheep and rabbits and another is listed as not dangerous to livestock. That doesn't mean all species are safe but like I said it doesn't appear to be poisonous.

 

[cmom]

I wouldn't worry. They are pertty good at eating good things.

 

[Judy]

I have a free range flock, and another in a large coop with a very large pen. Both have access to plants that I have no idea what the name of is. I have lost some of the free rangers to fox, and perhaps some other predators, but never to a plant, that I know of. The chickens do not mess with most of the weeds in the large pen, other than the grasses. I have not lost any in the large pen.

I am inclined to think that chickens know what to eat, and what nor to eat.