Ooops Avocado

[RMo2]

Hello! I am new to chickens-- my girls are about 14 weeks old. I was in a rush this AM to give them their "treats" and didn't check out whether or not avocado was ok to give to them

. I only gave them the inside of the avocado-- no peel and no pit. On our hour drive after leaving the house, I started to wonder if it was ok and discovered that many say it is not ok. We were not able to turn around and remove the avocado (and they probably already ate it by then). I just got home and ran out to check on them and they seem fine. I fed them at 9:00 and it is no 2:00-- would they already be showing signs of distress or would it take longer? Is there anything I should do??

Thanks!

 

[americanvalkyrie]

If they're ok so far, I would just keep an eye on them and not give them any more avocado. According to this Wikipedia article, the most toxic parts are the parts that you didn't give to them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persin

And here's a good blog from McMurray that talks about what you can and can't feed them:

http://blog.mcmurrayhatchery.com/2011/10/04/feeding-your-chickens-table scraps/

 

[RMo2]

Thank you! The 12-24 hour time window worries me :-( It has been almost 6 hours, so I would guess they would show some signs if they would possibly die within 12 hours.

I should have known to take the time to look it up before giving them something new :-(

Thanks so much for your insight!

 

[dragonlair]

If death occurred in 12-24 hours, you would definintely see some symptoms by now.

 

[donrae]

My birds have had access to peels and pits over the years, they just don't eat them. The rare bits of actual avocado or leftover guacamole have never hurt them. Your birds will be fine.

 

[RMo2]

Thank you everyone! My chickies are fine!

 

[americanvalkyrie]

Thank you everyone! My chickies are fine!

Yaaay!

 

[triplepurpose]

I've fed occasional overripe avos from the orchard for years to chickens of all ages with no observed ill effects before anyone ever told me they weren't good for them--and after talking to a vet and searching the internet I'm still skeptical about it being truly harmful. Apparently the wild chickens that are all over the place here never got the memo either: much to my annoyance they are noisily congregating at dawn every morning to feast on the fallen avocados under the trees outside my bedroom.

 

[RMo2]

Thats good to know! I think I will still stay away from them just in case, but if they ever get ahold of another bit of avocado, I will not get as stressed out! Thank or your insight!! Much appreciated