Hens don't care about most veggies??

[katelk]

For some reason my Roos will go nuts over veggies and fruits- does not matter what it is. However, my girls act like I am crazy when I try to feed them fruits and veggies!
Even when the Roos are excited and calling them over for a special treat, they come running and then are just like, "really? You called us here for this?" Lol
They will sometimes eat tomatoes, but that is about it.
They DO however about kill each other over meat (bugs, worms, hotdogs, kitchen scraps, etc) and the boys don't care about that.
I suppose it is good in a way that someone loves everything, but I usually have WAY more fruits and veggie scraps lol.
What is up with this?

 

[BorneHomestead]

they are wanting the protein more than the fruit/veggies.. mine are the same way, they will always eat meat first, then rice, and then the fruit/veggies if they are still hungry enough for it, but most times just turn their noses up at it. you could just compost the fruit/veggies.

 

[pdirt]

You could also try fermenting the veggies scraps. It's pretty easy:

Fill a quart jar with veggies scraps
add 1 tsp vinegar (any kind will do)
Fill jar with water (if your water has chlorine in it, either first filter or let it sit out 12-24 hours to off gas the chlorine)
Take a leaf of cabbage, kale, spinach, onion peel, etc to push the veggies down under the water and leave it in the jar
Place the jar on a plate or in a bowl to catch any overflow as it ferments
Wait 2-5 days (fewer at 70F, more at lower temps), then strain and feed to your birds and see if they like it better (save some liquid)

It should smell slightly sour or pickled and may or may not form bubbles. It will be more nutritious for the birds and slightly easier for them to eat. If they don't like this stuff, then maybe yeah, they need more protein?

This will work best if at least half of the veggies are uncooked. It's also best if not more than 10-25% is fruit scraps (too much fruit will create alcohol). If the jar attracts flies (and the flies bother you) you can cover with a cloth or paper towel with a rubber band to hold it secure. Otherwise, the flies that make it into the liquid will just be extra protein!

If they do like it, use some of the liquid from the first batch to make your subsequent batches ferment quicker.

Another idea is an easy one for this time of year...pumpkins: If you have a pumpkin starting to rot (it's starting to ferment), let it rot real good until goo is dripping from it (do this outside or in a container to catch the goo), then give the whole thing to your chooks. They should go nuts over it.