Kitchen scraps

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

You're very funny.
(where's that ignore button)

 

[Ihavesomechickens]

I just read through this thread, and here are my two cents about the whole thing.


First of all, I don’t think giving rotten food to any animal is exactly a good thing to do. I mean some animals are made to eat spoiled, rotten, decomposing food, but chickens really aren’t. They can eat things that we don’t like but aren’t bad ( mushy strawberries, slimy bananas, bruised apples, etc.), but feeding spoiled food to any living thing that is not meant to eat it is a horrid thing to do in my opinion. Secondly, I don’t think chickens should have milk. Chickens aren’t mammals, they aren’t meant to drink milk. Chickens are birds. They don’t have the proteins needed to digest lactose. Yogurt is the only dairy I feed my flock, because it has such low levels of lactose it won’t hurt them. Yogurts benefits for chickens also highly out way any non-benefits. My last opinion is that you shouldn’t do what you tubers do. They are just people going around, trying to get clout. There might be good farm channels out there, but they wouldn’t be popular. You don’t get subscribers from doing what should be done, you get subscribers from having outlandish ( sometimes harmful) methods.
So in conclusion, I think you shouldn’t listen to anyone on YouTube for anything, except maybe how to fix a chair or something.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

In addition to you tubers, I’ll add “you shouldn’t listen to anyone on the internet either”.

 

[Ihavesomechickens]

In addition to you tubers, I’ll add “you shouldn’t listen to anyone on the internet either”.

Yeah. The internet really isn’t the best place to find information, but I’d say BYC is rather good at providing true information.

 

[NatJ]

feeding spoiled food to any living thing that is not meant to eat it is a horrid thing to do in my opinion.

It may all come down to what we mean by "feeding" it to the chickens.

My opinion:

Forcing them to eat it because they have nothing else--bad.
Forcing them to eat it by mixing it into their other food--bad.

Offering them a small amount, knowing they will gobble down whatever is offered--slightly less bad, but still not a good idea.

Putting it in the compost pile, and letting the chickens have access to the compost pile so they can make their own choices (while also having constant access to a blanced, complete feed)-- good.

But all of those could be called "feeding it to the chickens."

 

[Ihavesomechickens]

It may all come down to what we mean by "feeding" it to the chickens.

My opinion:

Forcing them to eat it because they have nothing else--bad.
Forcing them to eat it by mixing it into their other food--bad.

Offering them a small amount, knowing they will gobble down whatever is offered--slightly less bad, but still not a good idea.

Putting it in the compost pile, and letting the chickens have access to the compost pile so they can make their own choices (while also having constant access to a blanced, complete feed)-- good.

But all of those could be called "feeding it to the chickens."

Yes. Chickens will naturally avoid food they deem not good, so having free choice on what they eat is good. I still wouldn’t recommend giving them access to rotting meat, spoiled milk, moldy food, etc., but the chickens can learn from getting sick to avoid those spoiled foods.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Yeah. The internet really isn’t the best place to find information, but I’d say BYC is rather good at providing true information.

I’ll agree, with the caveat that it’s on all of US to make that true with every post. Every time an untrue thing (“potato peels are POISONOUS”) is uttered on here, it’s less accurate and reliable.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I just spent a couple hours re-piling compost and processing food waste into the pile. It’s 90 degrees out.

I will continue to post based on my experience that that this can be done successfully....I will no longer disagree with anyone who says I’m nuts to do it.

 

[paintedChix]

I like the direction this thread has gone, because we are all agreed that it is situational and we certainly aren't all in the same situation.

And certainly went controversial for a bit...

I, too, follow the Justin Rhodes family. And many other YouTubers. That doesn't mean I follow OR espouse it unequivocally to everyone. For every person asked, there will be a different thing done, because EVERYONE generally develops what works for them in THEIR situation, through trial and error.

The same thing applies to feeding, breeding, raising & training dogs and horses, too!

I don't have time to go back thru the videos now, but I don't remember them ever stating that they fed "rotten or spoiled" milk to their chickens - directly (not sayin' they didn't, just I don't remember it). That said, as I've expanded the number of channels I'm subscribed to, plus worked many more "full time" hours since the corona virus lockdown started, I haven't watched all of the 2019 or 2020 vids. I do understand that they use MOST of the milk they produce for themselves (dear gosh, I'd love to have the time & the strength to be able to do what they are doing!! - milk, yogurt, butter, cheese and the drink made from milk which i can't remember the name of). The last several videos that I did watch - all the extra milk went to the pigs, not the chickens. And pigs do well on milk products.

But now I wonder - if dairy products are so bad for chickens - why is it so desirable to finish off the French Bresse with nothing but milk and "cereal grains" before processing them for the dinner plate (for 2-4 weeks depending on which type of bird/plate processing for)?

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/french-standards-for-raising-bresse-meat-chickens.866299/

Edited to add - There are other sources like above - that is only one I came across so quickly.

I personally follow a "plan" similar to JR's family, but not the same. We, too, are in NC but a lot of JR's practices do not work for us. Most certainly the 4' fence with a horizontal "roost" doesn't!! Even the hot fencing didn't work for us - we've had dogs that were running deer and doves for their hunting owners jump our fences right in front of us (didn't have rifles on us and I still don't usually carry one) and decimate whole flocks in 2018 and 2019 - in broad daylight, both AM & PM. Also, a set of dogs that appeared to have gotten loose from reprehensible owners - they were obviously starving. I was able to follow & chased 2 off our property at about 6:30 am... They were digging under our field fence to get into the pony pasture - where we have 3 chicken coops (they hadn't been turned loose to free range yet that day or later the dogs might have gotten to them) & 4 new pony foals that year (2018).

I have visited several farms that DID have fencing with pastures for their chickens in 2x4" wire that is 48" tall. Those folks tell me that the chickens DON'T fly up and roost on it - when the top of it is "loose" (no horizontal board between posts). They have very large, free roaming flocks in those pastures. Apparently, they don't have the predator load(s) that we do either as they don't seem to lose birds like we do!

 

[Ihavesomechickens]

But now I wonder - if dairy products are so bad for chickens - why is it so desirable to finish off the French Bresse with nothing but milk and "cereal grains" before processing them for the dinner plate (for 2-4 weeks depending on which type of bird/plate processing for)?

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/french-standards-for-raising-bresse-meat-chickens.866299/

Because when they do that, they are being used as meat birds and people don’t care if it hurts the chicken’s stomachs.