My chickens won't eat scraps!

[backyardmenagerie]

I recently got 6 12week old pullets, to start my flock. I have been reading on here about feeding fruit and vegetable scraps to chickens, and I was thinking "woohoo! Garbage disposal!" So for the last few days I've been taking my girls left overs from the house, including slightly squishy blueberries, strawberry tops, slightly stale bread, some apple pieces, and scrambled eggs. They won't touch any of it. I tried putting scraps on top of their regular food, so they would have to eat some of it to get to the feed, and they looked at me like I was trying to poison them.

Any chance they'll develop a taste for treats? Or should I give up, and start a compost pile?

 

[jenesis536]

I usually mix everything, but maybe try only one item or two items at a time... when I first started putting stuff out there, they wouldn't go near it. I would go out a few hours later and there would be nothing left. They can be afraid of new things. Keep trying.

 

[Kassaundra]

I would try hand feeding them some of the scraps, they may not understand it is food, especially the scrambled eggs. Mine love table scraps of all kinds, but we started them early and hand fed at first.

 

[caspernc]

I gave my girls a acorn squash today for the first time, got it on special. I cut it in half and put it in the coop. You would have thought I have put two bombs in there and they were about to detinate at any second. I just aboout wet myself laughing. All of a sudden one brave girl desided to save them all and attack it.....she slid to a stop and the food fight was on. I came back a couple of hours later and there were two empty shells.

 

[aprhardy]

Just take your time as mentioned above. I decided to "spoil" my hens recently, and bought one of the wild bird hanging bells, and hung it in their pen for them to "play" with, for the first day they acted as though I had put an alien inside their pen with them and refused to go near it! Heaven forbid the wind blow it and it move! They'd scatter like mad animals! Then I broke off a few of the edges and hand fed it to them, today (2 days later) it is gone! Now they are looking for more so since they seemed to enjoy it so much I went to TSC and go an all flock block, which is like a salt lick you'd get for cows, except it is seeds and things for birds. Ohhhhhh the fun they have with that!

 

[backyardmenagerie]

I left some apple in their dish today, and it wasn't touched this evening.

I'll leave it in there overnight, but I doubt they're going to touch it. And I would try hand feeding it, but they don't like me that much yet.

However, I did offer them some egg shell this evening, and that went over well! I've only had them a week, and I'm pretty sure they've never had treats before, or had any sort of human attention, so maybe as they get more settled they'll realize I'm not out to get them. They did greet me at the door this evening, rather than take off for the far corner. So that was nice.

 

[Judy]

Sounds like they're not used to scraps, probably afraid of them. Work with them, they'll get the idea.

 

[goldenluver]

chickens are the most distrusting creatures.

just leave a dish of scraps every day for them, it won't be long before the are waiting for that dish.

 

[dragonjaze]

Quote:
Well, you have to admit they have reason to be distrusting...Just about everyone loves a chicken dinner.

It's hard to taste like chicken all the time!

 

[backyardmenagerie]

All is well now, apparently they just needed a little competition.

I brought home 5 new hens and a rooster, all 3 years old, and they gobbled up the scraps that I had left out. The pullets watched for awhile, then starting dashing in to steal a few pieces. When I brought out new stuff this morning, the pullets were the first ones in line.