Help, my chickens are addicts! LOL

[alohachickens]

I'm having a feeding "problem" with my little flock. They like a certain feed a little *too* much . . .

I bought some "Oat Groats" at the feed store - don't know why they call them "Groats" they look like plain old rolled oats to me.

Anyway, they all just LOVE the oats. I mean, they REALLY LOVE the oats. Yes, they will eat the lay feed when they're hungry, but all day now they follow me around, hang out by the back door (pooping on the patio in the process) and generally pester me until they get another "fix". I've never seen chickens so obsessed!

I've thought about either discontinuing the oats altogether, and hoping eventually to wean the little junkies off. If that even *works* at this point . . . or will they keep following me around for-ever? Ha!

The other option is to just buy the BIG bag of oats, and let them have a lot of them, thus satisfying their addictive cravings.

Is a diet of primarily oats a bad thing? Do they HAVE to eat mostly Lay Feed to lay eggs? Or does it matter? If they are addicted to oats, and want half (or more) of the diet to be oats, is that OK?

BTW, they do not care for regular cracked corn, or milo - won't even touch "chicken scratch". I tried putting that down, they just kind of looked at it, and then came right back to me for the oats. "Bring us oats, stupid human!!! OAAATTS!"

I bought a replacement bag of oats, set it on a shelf in the back yard, and the next morning they had tipped it over, spilling about five pounds of oats to the ground. That morning, they were NOT waiting for me by the back door. I wondered why until I saw they had been feasting on what I now call "Chicken Crack" all morning.

They are free-range but we don't have a lot of greens or bugs because we're in the desert. Just some Winter Rye grass that I planted in the yard.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[ChickieDee]

Can't help you with your problem but just wanted to say your story made me laugh. "Chicken crack"

. My chicken crack is cracked corn. They follow me everywhere just to have a taste. I guess anything not in the feeder is better in there minds.

 

[ksacres]

I feed mine a handful of sweet feed at night, along with a handful of sunflower seeds and a handfull of catfood. They love their treats, but only get them at night, so if they are hungry during the day, they have to eat their crumbles.

 

[1acrefarm]

My chickens love oats. They do not get them from a bag. I grow them in the yard so they grab them when they are free ranging. I bought a bag of seed made for deer from the sporting good section at walmart. It has wheat oats and a small bit of clover. The 50 pound bag cost me 18 dollars. My goats and chickens go nuts over it the resulting lawn. It saves me alot of feed too. I had to have ground cover so that seemed like the cheapest most nutritious way to go.

 

[tazcat70]

Quote:
I will have too look for it..sounds like a good mix.

Tonya

 

[Cuban Longtails]

Quote:
I thought about doing that exact same thing, but didn't get around to it. I'm definitely going to the next opportunity I have to buy the seed.