How many times/day do you feed your chickens?

[bwr719]

I keep free access to layer pellets and give them day old bread as a treat in the afternoons.

 

[Teila]

told you there was gonna be a riot or better yet, FOOD FIGHT !!!

 

[Crzy Chi Lady]

They can eat raw meat just fine as long as it's in small pieces....but then, I've seen a small NH hen swallow a 10 in. snake in one or two gulps.  It's not dangerous to feed them cooked meat, though I must admit that cooked meats are not something that ever hits our scrap pile...we eat all that.  Even if it did, the dog would gobble it up first. 

When I process chickens my flock will stand and wait for the choice bits...I toss them bits of liver, spleen, testicles, and fat.  They have no problem eating raw meats.  I think it would probably be according to what your animals are conditioned to eat whether they had problems digesting it.  Mine are conditioned for everything. 

This is true. I have seen chickens eat lizards. Other small birds. I even found a snake in my coup once half eaten.

 

[Godsgrl]

Sorry for such a basic question, but am wondering if chickens should be fed 2X/day? We have been feeding them every morning, and occasionally in the afternoon if we have kitchen scraps. Now I am wondering if we are under-feeding them. We have four healthy-looking hens that are nearly 8 months old. They started laying in mid-December and are producing 3-4 eggs/day. Thanks for your feedback.

Please don't apologize. I read your post, and thought, that is a really good question.

 

[SilkieSensation]

I find parts of that list to be either inaccurate or depending upon scale.  If apple seeds were toxic there wouldn't be an alive chicken in the world today except where apples are not available.  When apples are unripe/green the seeds have more arsenic and can be slightly toxic if eaten in volume, but to say apple seeds are toxic is a misnomer.  The same with citrus fruits, garlic, onions, chocolate, etc.  All of these are regularly fed to chickens without any ill effects of any kind. 

No offense, but I think that list needs to die a natural death and a more practical one based on actual results when these things are fed to chickens~not as a primary feed ration~but as the occasional, seasonal addition to the diet~should be comprised.  I've seen so much confusion and needless fear over that list in the last 5 years that I feel it does more harm than good to post it. 

I totally agree that the list of "toxic" foods is not beneficial, at least in its current format. My chickens ranged for years in my backyard orchard without any ill affects.
Chickens are pretty good at avoiding harmful foods as long as they have plenty of good food available. So if you just throw out some scraps as extras they'll usually pick through it, eat what they like and leave the rest.
I don't think it's a good idea to feed table scraps to chickens. Unless you are in the habit of wasting a lot of food, your scraps are probably only good for throwing in the compost pile or feeding to a pig.

Mine also eat anything I toss their way. Never lost a bird to bad food. They eat what they want & leave the rest. Mine eat anything the kids leave behind, anthing I clean out of the fridge & anything they can find or catch on their own.

 

[Scott H]

I feed ours cooked meat......I feed the dog cooked meat....I feed the cat cooked meat.

 

[AmericanMom]

I feed ours cooked meat......I feed the dog cooked meat....I feed the cat cooked meat.

LOL.. I even feed DH cooked meat

 

[Granny Hatchet]

i dont feed the dh he just keeps coming back for more

 

[AmericanMom]

i dont feed the dh he just keeps coming back for more

 

[MaPa26]

Quote: My hens are VERY carnivorous! They eat frogs, toads, lizards, snakes, mice AND, if we don't get the deck cleaned off before letting them out in the morning, we have to fight them to get the rat "leftovers" that my cat left at the backdoor!