Is Road Salt Safe?

[Juise]

I almost slipped on an icy patch in the driveway today, so without giving it any thought, I went in, grabbed the road salt, and scattered it over the icy patch. When I went back out later and walked past the area, the combination of salt and chicken prints all over the snow struck an alarm in my brain.

Chickens + Salt = Bad. Will they eat the road salt?

It was not really possible to tell whether or not they had eaten any, and if they did, there (as far as I know,) isn't anything I can do about it now, except prevent further issues. They walked all through it, but they walked all over the place, so that doesn't really mean anything...

 

[dawg53]

I wouldnt worry about it.

 

[myfinefeatheredfriends]

Salt is a natural mineral so I don't think the little amount if your chickens did get hold of any would hurt them. They probably would have a difficult time breaking it up to make it small enough to swallow anyway and would eventually just give up on it.

 

[Juise]

Well, you know, arsenic is naturally occurring, too!

Just sayin.

They free range, though, so if I am using it on my driveway and walk, there is more than a "little amount" they have access too, you know what I mean? It is amply available. Here in Michigan, we slather the whole state with salt in the Winter.

It's not in ginormous chunks, I mean, I wouldn't sprinkle it on my eggs, but it certainly much smaller than a frog, which I have seen them swallow whole before.