Is it ok for my chickens to have access to the compost made from my house rabbit and hamster litter/

[AGB680]

I've been told that rabbit litter (wood stove pellets, orchard grass, oat grass, poop and urine) makes great compost and now we also have a hamster that uses aspen wood shavings for litter. My question after reading the article about giving chickens plenty of compost to scratch vs. giving them a lot of feed is far better and cheaper but I wonder if the rabbit compost will be enough for them?? Otherwise I suppose I could add a truck load of compost to the existing pile to provide more food for them! Thanks-
Amy on the Oregon Coast

 

[GreenSahara]

The more compost that your chickens have to scratch through, the better. No matter how much you put down, they should be able to reap a benefit from it. That being said, the more compost that you can amass for your chickens, the more likely it is to attract worms, grubs and other goodies for your chickens to enjoy.

 

[donrae]

It's fine for them to scratch in, but they also need feed. Compost won't provide everything they need to be high producing birds.

 

[GreenSahara]

It's fine for them to scratch in, but they also need feed. Compost won't provide everything they need to be high producing birds.

Definitely. It would take a ridiculous quantity of compost to feed your chickens off of it solely.

You might want to check this out though, http://www.geofflawton.com/fe/59960-feed-chickens-without-grain
Good food for thought.

 

[Mahlzeit]

Compost is great for them to play around in and pick out treats but they should also have layer pellets out for them to eat as well to help give them everything they need for the hard task of egg making.

 

[AGB680]

I asked this in direct response to the article regarding that farmer in Vermont who doesn't feed his chickens at all but instead allows them to 'work' for their food by scratching at huge piles of cow manure/hay/dirt compost heaps....

 

[appps]

Huge piles and that produced by two pets sound like different plans altogether.

I think I'd stick to feeding them but letting them scratch in a compost with fruit and vege scraps. That's just me though I find the thought of them eating poop a bit gross lol

Mine love to get in our compost but don't think it would ever come close to providing all their food needs so either they were hungry chickens or it was bloody huge poop pile he had!

 

[aart]

Magazine articles rarely tell the whole story. Can you post a link to the article?

Depends on how big the compost pile it and what is in it, chickens don't eat poop, they may eat hay but probably not feces soiled hay. Chickens feeding from compost piles are eating bugs attracted to the pile and human food scraps in the pile and chickens in that scenario are probably also foraging in a free range situation. Providing the proper kind of compost pile and free ranging foraging, you will notice they eat less purchased chicken feed...but they still need access to the proper feed at all times.

Rabbit litter is excellent compost for feeding gardens as it can be put on at any time without aging as there is no risk of nitrogen burning the plants....it's what I use when I plant garlic in the fall.

 

[JesNflock]

Magazine articles rarely tell the whole story. Can you post a link to the article?

Depends on how big the compost pile it and what is in it, chickens don't eat poop, they may eat hay but probably not feces soiled hay. Chickens feeding from compost piles are eating bugs attracted to the pile and human food scraps in the pile and chickens in that scenario are probably also foraging in a free range situation. Providing the proper kind of compost pile and free ranging foraging, you will notice they eat less purchased chicken feed...but they still need access to the proper feed at all times.

Rabbit litter is excellent compost for feeding gardens as it can be put on at any time without aging as there is no risk of nitrogen burning the plants....it's what I use when I plant garlic in the fall.

I believe this is the guy that you are talking about that does the composting and no feed. This was being discussed on another thread as well that thread is https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ard-for-increasing-free-ranging-nutrition/200

Compost video: Hopefully this link works...if not I posted the thread link that it was being discussed on.
http://api.viglink.com/api/click?fo.../-W_WPMm8Bxw&jsonp=vglnk_jsonp_13877186903576

 

[Michael Apple]

It is best to keep chickens away from compost piles unless you are prepared to treat them for intestinal diseases. Rotting vegetation, meats, dung, ammonia, molds are all potential problems for the health of the flock. Just about every poultry publication will advise people to avoid those things. I'm sure I'll get some responses and referred to some article a person posted on his webpage. This subject has been discussed before, at length on BYC. Common sense should be the basis for the health of the flock.