Is there anything that a chicken should not eat?

[Lu King]

Is there anything that a chicken should not eat...grass, weed or insect? My chickens are two months old.

 

[jenjscott]

I know they sould not have cut grass. they can swallow it whole instead of in little pieces and it can impact their crop. Here is a post from another member and a link to a good site.

 

[digitS']

The Treats Chart linked at the top of this forum has a list of good and not-so-good things for chickens.

This isn't quite what you are asking about but it shows some of the reasons to be concerned: laying hens eating lead paint chips.

I have a 100 year old home. There's no question that it was painted at one time with lead-based paint. It now has siding but there must be plenty of paint chips in the soil around the home.

This is just one example of the birds getting into things that they really shouldn't. They will darn near eat anything. Most toxins don't kill the livestock that eat them. But, interference with their digestion and egg production is a reason for the chicken-keeper's due diligence. Or, as in the case shown, an environmental toxin that contaminates animal products used for human food, is an important matter.

Steve