my chickens dont like kitchen scraps or chicken food.

[poonam]

hi folks

need some help. My 6 month old chickens don't like any kitchen scraps or even their own food, which is organic layer crumble (we've tried pellets before as well, they hate that too). They free range for about 5 hours a day, and almost all day on saturday and sunday, and they peck around and eat things in the garden. They do like sunflower seeds, scrambled eggs, oatmeal. But they don't eat any veggie type greens. I was worried already until one of our chickens started laying eggs with a soft shell (calcium deficiency).

Any advice on how to get them to eat veggie scraps, or even their own food, would be greatly appreciated.

thanks!

 

[BrattishTaz]

Perhaps they would develop a taste for their food if you confine them to their run for a couple of day with only chicken feed available. They will not be happy about it but they will get over it. I've also found that mine prefer veggies that have been run through the food processor. Do they have free access to oyster shell? That should resolve the calcium issue. I hope this helps.

And

 

[mywifewasonherenowiamalso]

just let them eat what they find and put some oyster shell out. just make a compost pile. mine eat whatever, i have to be careful about what i leave down cause they will get the string that comes off the feed bags or the feed bag. my problem is the chickens wont let me walk unless i throw some grains out the door first, i keep a 50 lb bag by the door. they basicly attack me like that old movie where those birds attack people.

 

[AlienChick]

You may also want to make sure your organic layer crumbles does not have "extra" calcium in it (if you're going to provide extra oyster shell).

And if your chickens are picky eaters, try throwing anything RED out there for them (watermelon, strawberries, etc.) and give them some bananas. If that doesn't work, you, indeed, have picky eaters!

 

[poonam]

ok

thank you all for your thoughts. my chickens are very very strange. I've been trying some fruit, and they're taking a little. but no greens. Ah, life is going to be so good for them when they start eating healthy things.

 

[TheSpiceGirls]

I have picky eaters like yours.

I find they are more interested in things if they are bite sized so I'll save up scraps when I'm making a salad and before I run it out to them, dump it back onto the cutting board and chop it up into smaller pieces. That usually makes it more interesting.

But I feel your pain. My Jersey Giant is still growing and I'm trying to get more protein in her and she turns up her nose at yogurt, scrambled egg and last night I made curds for them but she wanted nothing to do with that either.

She'll gladly sit and pick all the darkling beetles out of my meal worm farm for me though.

 

[poonam]

ah, that's good to know that i'm not the only one with the odd chickens who don't eat kitchen scraps.

I wish that they'd atleast eat their crumble.

i'll try the chopping up into little pieces technique and see how it flies.

 

[Marshchick]

I'm lucky too, mine eat just about anything, except the lobster bodies we tried last night. They didn't like that at all.

They do love all types of veggies, fruits, their grain, etc..