Oats

[southdeb]

Hi there!

Hope you all are doing great
I was wondering how do you give oats to your chickens.. Do they eat the same oats we do?
What if I just throw "Quaker" oats around? Will they eat it just like that?

I'll be awaiting for your advice!

Let me introduce you one of my chicks, Carlota!
She is a beautiful Collonca (One of the two tipes of Chilean Araucanas)

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Oats are fine... they can even be sprouted if you get the right ones. Dry or soaked, raw or cooked.. shouldn't be an issue.

Never more than 10% total of their daily ration should be fed out in treats. Ration has added vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that the grain by themselves do not contain.

Don't forget they are omnivores and like meat.

 

[southdeb]

Oats are fine... they can even be sprouted if you get the right ones. Dry or soaked, raw or cooked.. shouldn't be an issue.

Never more than 10% total of their daily ration should be fed out in treats. Ration has added vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that the grain by themselves do not contain.

Don't forget they are omnivores and like meat.

Thanks!!
What kind of meat do you give them?

 

[Athena2344]

Thanks!!
What kind of meat do you give them?

Mealworms and bugs, you can raise your own mealworms if you wanted to

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Thanks!!
What kind of meat do you give them?

Yes, I do raise meal worms. And have raised red wigglers in a composting bin before. And consider a maggot bucket.

But I give them whatever... ONLY if it's not going to be eaten by my family and still not excessively. Ground beef, chicken, tuna, turkey, scrambled eggs, tofu. Cooked, not raw... usually.

I even just put cardboard down and soak it good for a few days where it doesn't dry out.. and the worms gather under there. I either collect and feed or just call the chooks over to scratch it up and move it aside a little for the next round.

 

[Athena2344]

I couldn't imagine giving a chicken meat although i've seen my past ones catch anoles, and a hen (not mine) catch a mouse. I raise superworms

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I couldn't imagine giving a chicken meat although i've seen my past ones catch anoles, and a hen (not mine) catch a mouse. I raise superworms

Well, I don't mean go out of your way to buy it for them. But if you have it on hand instead of letting go to waste, (if it's going to)... many people don't realize that chickens aren't vegetarian.

And the amino acids, iron and other nutrients in animal protein can help a struggling bird out... for example during molt... feathers are made of 90% protein and it's amino acids. Providing a protein rich diet can help them recover and even return to lay more quickly. Yes, I have personally experience this. Those key amino acids cannot be derived from plant sources. Though most of our formulated rations ARE vegetarian... they have the amino acids added in. And if someone advertises their egg as being only "veg fed" then it throws red flags up to me that their birds have never seen the light of day... because all chickens will eat bugs. But I know that isn't the whole truth and many of us don't want some funky flavor popping up in our eggs or nasty animal byproducts being fed to our animals.

But too many people feed out high fat seeds or low protein scratch or think they're doing something special by giving lettuce which is a fun treat but mostly water.

Also we process our own chickens and go fishing... there are parts we don't eat but they will. But no, I don't spend bank buying quality meats for my chooks either and do understand how ludicrous it sounds when so many people are struggling to put food on the table.

 

[Athena2344]

No, i totally get it, i definantly realize that they are omnivores and will eat bugs and such, i even buy feeder fish for my geese for enrichment. When i let out the pair of chooks, i'll turn over stones and such for them, we have ALOT of rollie pollies lol

 

[PirateGirl]

https://www.murdochs.com/products/l...urpose-feed/country-feeds-steam-crimped-oats/

You can buy something like this at the feed store. You can get 50lbs for the same price as two small canisters of Quaker oats.

 

[rum3002576]

My chickens seem to always leave the oats till last for some reason