hay

[coffeychicks]

So after some reading I decided to get a bale of hay to see if my chickens would like it. It was a hit they are all over it. Now I am thinking I should have gotten 2.

 

[Kelsie2290]

They do have fun with bales don't they. You can always get another every month or so, for chickens xmas comes more than once a year.

 

[coffeychicks]

This is very true. It isn't Luke we are running out of hay lol. All my girls have it stuck in their backs too funny to see

 

[jtakacs]

I may do this in the spring so it doesn't mold with the rain.... it'll give them something to do during the day... thanks for the idea.

 

[FuzzyButtz]

Being a horse person I have lots of Hay, but i'm still new to chickens.... do you give it to them for bedding, or for feed?

 

[Kelsie2290]

Also a lot of people use it as a "toy" to give the chickens something to do / keep them occupied so they are not as bored, especially in the winter when they can't be outside much. Theory is it helps keep them from feather picking and picking on each other as much.

 

[nakedneckmom]

Quote:
Whenever I get new hay, I clean out the hay barn and give the chickens all the loose stuff to play in. I also use it to fluff up their nest boxes!

 

[donrae]

Whenever I get new hay, I clean out the hay barn and give the chickens all the loose stuff to play in. I also use it to fluff up their nest boxes!

This is what I do, it's too expensive for me to just get bales for the chickens----as stated, there's a lot of waste. Alfalfa gets eaten better than grass imo, but it also depends on how stemmy it is. They don't eat the stems/stalks much, but the seeds and chaff do down a treat. When we free ranged the flock, we'd pull the truck in with a ton of hay to unload. Before the truck was stopped and backed into place at the hay barn, there were several chickens up on top of the hay, picking through for the seeds. The hay barn was also the preferred place to lay--you know, way up top, on that highest bale where I had to send my Sugar Monkey to get the eggs or I'd bang my head

Just be sure the birds have access to some grit to help grind up all the roughage. I've never had crop/gizzard issues from hay, but my birds always have grit.

 

[coffeychicks]

Originally I get it for the rabbit houses dog houses and nest box. Which doesn't take much over half a bale went to chickens even today still playing

 

[Rettarain2]

Being a horse person I have lots of Hay, but i'm still new to chickens.... do you give it to them for bedding, or for feed?