Is it true??

[Chickenupho]

Hi there! I’ve been interested in chickens for awhile now and I’m going to be getting some in March. So I’ve been reading around, and I stumbled across this article that claimed this man was feeding his chickens veggies, and leftovers and that was all that was needed to keep them alive...(they were provided grit of course) I laughed my head off at this idea until my mother said when she was growing up she had remembered only feeding their chickens chopped up veggies and cabbage along with some corn and leftovers. So, I wanted to know if this was possible? ​

 

[Shadowfire]

As long as the chicken gets enough natural forage (grass, grit, bugs, etc), only feeding veggies would be fine; but that cannot be their full diet or they will develop problems. As Sanderson Farms states, chickens are not vegetarian.

 

[Clubber1234]

Hi there! I’ve been interested in chickens for awhile now and I’m going to be getting some in March. So I’ve been reading around, and I stumbled across this article that claimed this man was feeding his chickens veggies, and leftovers and that was all that was needed to keep them alive...(they were provided grit of course) I laughed my head off at this idea until my mother said when she was growing up she had remembered only feeding their chickens chopped up veggies and cabbage along with some corn and leftovers. So, I wanted to know if this was possible? ​

I think it's possible my chickens fairly live on scraps!
I provide them with water and grit, and layers pellets sometimes.

 

[RumneyRoost]

Sure it’s possible. I’d be pretty happy living on Caesar salad but that’s not a balanced diet either.

Poultry nutritional requirements have been pretty thoroughly studied, and poultry feed is pretty affordable. Best to stick with what’s proven, and add a couple treats along the way

 

[Ribh]

Times have changed. The life expectancy of chooks was short. Once they stopped laying they went in the pot. Nutritional problems didn't have time to develop. Now studies & breeding have developed chooks with longer life spans, greater output, & higher nutritional needs as a consequence.

 

[Chickenupho]

Ohp ok! Thank you guys!!!

 

[Folly's place]

Today's laying hens can produce over 300 eggs per year, and they need a quality balanced diet! Living while malnourished isn't what I want for my birds...
Mary