is VEG OIL ok to give to chickens (on top of food)?

[HeyMama]

We have some oil from a deep fryer that we would otherwise throw away when we replace our
fryer oil, but I was thinking that maybe the chickens would find it tasty atop some bread scraps.

I've researched to see if it is good for them or bad for them, with no luck.

Thoughts?

 

[Chick Charm]

Oil is not something that a chicken would benefit from. Nothing in their natural eating patterns would even mimic oil. Some food stuffs like this should just be put to other uses like the compost pile (I try not to put oil in there even) or the trash.

Wish ya the best.

 

[Cindy in PA]

I'm not sure about your fryer oil, but I know vegetable oil is sometimes added to feed. The local farmer where I sometimes buy feed uses it to make feed not so dusty. Oil could be a source of healthy fats and other things. Hopefully someone with more knowledge will chime in.

 

[Bullitt]

Oil is not something that a chicken would benefit from. Nothing in their natural eating patterns would even mimic oil. Some food stuffs like this should just be put to other uses like the compost pile (I try not to put oil in there even) or the trash.

Wish ya the best.

Chickens eat seeds and nuts that have oil in them. Of course chickens would not eat as much oil as they would if someone poured vegetable oil over bread or something.

I think chickens can eat vegetable oil or lard just fine. I would just suggest spreading it out.

 

[Chick Charm]

Olive oil is good for treating the crop. And so could vegetable oil. But I was thinking in general. Fat is good in a chickens diet as well as some oils that are in seeds, proteins and the like. But overall I cannot see the benefit to feeding to your chickens on pieces of bread. Unless you may be trying to fatten them up.

I don't think it would kill. But just don't see the need.

 

[jbsevy]

Aren't meal worms and other insects that chickens crave quite fatty? Seems that cooking oils, especially in cold weather and in moderation, will be a healthy addition to their hot mash or even mixed in with their laying feed.

But what do the pros do?

I don't want canola oil in my own diet, but there are lots of things chickens love that I don't want on my own plate. I suspect that scavengers, like chickens, eat a fair amount of rancid oils, but maybe not...

 

[Lizzy733]

Personally, I'd keep away from giving them fryer oil. There are good and bad oils and I doubt you're using flax seed, fish oil, olive oil or lard in your fryer.

Yes, oils can be healthy and do have a place in poultry medicine, but not fryer dredges. The volume would likely be excessive and the quality of oil people tend to use in the fryer will surely cause more harm than good.

It wouldn't be healthy for a human to chug that down either. Do remember that a good quality feed should make up 90% of their diet, leaving only 10% for treats. Oils are very fat dense and provide a lot of calories, so a little bit goes a long way.

Keep the good oils for the medicine cabinet - a teaspoon added to a slurry to help with slow crop or to lubricate a feeding tube. They don't need it the way you're describing.