Hens Refusing Pellets

[LeeLeesFarm]

_______________

Hi Everyone:

I have 3 hens who are exactly one year old this week.

They have been eating Lay Crumbles for the past 6ish months.

This weekend, I got a bag of Pellets instead of the crumbles .... thought I could maybe save on some of the waste.

But these 3 finicky hens are refusing the pellets.

I've ground some in a blender, but that grinds to too fine a powder and they didn't eat that.

Last night I mixed some pellets with water and oats to make the pellets softer. They did eat some of that before bed, but haven't touched the remainder of it this a.m. (And I only made a very small quantity).

Will they eventually get hungry enough that they will start eating the pellets, or are chickens so stubborn that they will die of hunger before eating the pellets?

I have a moveable A-Frame Run on my backyard grass, which they are in for ten hours every day, so they are at eating grass only, since Sunday.

Thanks for any thoughts / input,
Lee.

__________________

 

[Lancaster City Farmer]

Mine are spoiled if they get hungry enough they will eat most anything,give em time.

 

[LeeLeesFarm]

__________________

Thanks, Lancaster.

checking the hens food dish, it seems they are holding out for their old crumble food .... :-(

I guess the grass they eat during the day, is satisfying their hunger enough to keep them from digging in to the Pellets!!!!

Lee

_____________

 

[Chicken Woman]

I changed mine to pellets as it seed like they wasted alot. They didn't like the pellets but when i stopped giving them treats they stared eating the pellets.

Stuborn girls !!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[gritsar]

Let them get hungry enough and those pellets will start to look awful good to them. A chicken is not going to starve itself to death if appropriate food is available.

 

[OrpingtonManor]

I had the same worries when I switched mine to pellets this last bag. They had been on Chick Starter, then Crumbles. I had even bought one pound of the pellets to try, which they ate. Then, I bought the pellets, and they seemed to go on a hunger strike. It took them about a week to start eating what I thought was a normal amount again. They also had time each day to free range, so they didn't have to eat the pellets. Eventually, they started to eat them.

Keep in mind that it won't seem like they eat as much because they aren't wasting as much.

 

[LeeLeesFarm]

_____________

thanks everyone.

although they aren't eating the same quantities that they used to eat when I was giving them crumbles, they are now at least eating some of the pellets.

.

Lee

____________

 

[jjdward]

Ill have to agree with the others. They will eat it when they get hungry.

 

[seminolewind]

Mine hated the pellets, so I went back to crumbles.

 

[coupcobbler]

mine didnt like pellets, and the eggs seemed smaller then when on the layer mash, after two weeks I switched back to mash and they just love it, eggs seem bigger again and the girls attitude seems to have improved to happy again, so they get the mash and I'll deal with the limited waste, they still like to lick the bowl clean