Plums?

[ladynewtochicks]

Are plums ok for the chickens to eat? I see fruit on the treats list but it doesn't mention plums specifically. There is a plum tree where I want to put my coop and run, it only fruits maybe every 5 years or so. Hoping I don't have to replan my set up

 

[chickluvinfreak]

According to the Fresh Eggs Daily website, "No apple seeds (also avoid pits/seeds from apricots, cherries, peaches, pears and plums which contain trace amounts of cyanide) but the fruits are all fine cored." So yes if they eat some of the plums they should be fine just try to clean up the pits because they have a small amount of cyanide. I'm not sure a chicken could really eat the pits though it's much more likely they would get poisoned from apple seeds. And here's a link to another forum similar to your question, https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/148929/are-plums-okay-for-hens-to-eat. Hope this helps.

 

[ladynewtochicks]

According to the Fresh Eggs Daily website, "[COLOR=1D0F06]No apple seeds [/COLOR][COLOR=1D0F06](also avoid pits/seeds from apricots, cherries, peaches, pears and plums which contain trace amounts of cyanide) but the fruits are all fine cored." So yes if they eat some of the plums they should be fine just try to clean up the pits because they have a small amount of cyanide. I'm not sure a chicken could really eat the pits though it's much more likely they would get poisoned from apple seeds. And here's a link to another forum similar to your question,[/COLOR] https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/148929/are-plums-okay-for-hens-to-eat. Hope this helps.

Thank you so much! I agree though I can't imagine a chicken being able to eat a plum pit

 

[chickluvinfreak]

Your welcome I'm glad I could help. I think they will enjoy the shade and occasional treats from the tree too.

 

[ladynewtochicks]

That's what I was hoping for

 

[Ridgerunner]

I have a plum tree in my run. I butcher my chickens for meat. On more than one occasion I’ve found a plum pit in the gizzard when I butcher. They can and will eat plum pits and it does not kill them.

Many animals, including birds, eat a lot of fruits and seeds. Not just our domesticated fruits but a lot of wild fruits. Those seeds contain trace amounts of cyanide yet they don’t die. How can that possibly be? It’s not magic, it’s science. The dosage of cyanide in those seeds is so minute there is not enough to cause any harm. Chickens have been grazing in orchards for thousands of years on small farms and doing quite well thank you.

Practically anything you eat contains something that can harm you in the proper dosage. If you eat over 50 pounds of white potatoes at one sitting you might get enough solanine to harm you, though most people would have to eat over 65 pounds. In one sitting. Despite what my wife says, my stomach isn’t that big and neither is their crop. If you eat about 5 pounds of certain members of the cabbage family every day for a few weeks you can have thyroid problems, possibly fatal problems. Five pounds every day for a few weeks. There is just a tiny teen bit of fact in this yet some people write books, sell column-inches, and make a lot of money by blowing these things out of perspective. Fear can be quite profitable.

If you wish to go out there and try to protect your chickens from this mythical danger go right ahead. You certainly have that right. But I’ll continue tossing apples, peaches and other fruit, including seeds, to my chickens because they enjoy the treat. The plum tree is already in the run so they can get that themselves.

 

[ladynewtochicks]

I have a plum tree in my run. I butcher my chickens for meat. On more than one occasion I’ve found a plum pit in the gizzard when I butcher. They can and will eat plum pits and it does not kill them.

Many animals, including birds, eat a lot of fruits and seeds. Not just our domesticated fruits but a lot of wild fruits. Those seeds contain trace amounts of cyanide yet they don’t die. How can that possibly be? It’s not magic, it’s science. The dosage of cyanide in those seeds is so minute there is not enough to cause any harm. Chickens have been grazing in orchards for thousands of years on small farms and doing quite well thank you.

Practically anything you eat contains something that can harm you in the proper dosage. If you eat over 50 pounds of white potatoes at one sitting you might get enough solanine to harm you, though most people would have to eat over 65 pounds. In one sitting. Despite what my wife says, my stomach isn’t that big and neither is their crop. If you eat about 5 pounds of certain members of the cabbage family every day for a few weeks you can have thyroid problems, possibly fatal problems. Five pounds every day for a few weeks. There is just a tiny teen bit of fact in this yet some people write books, sell column-inches, and make a lot of money by blowing these things out of perspective. Fear can be quite profitable.

If you wish to go out there and try to protect your chickens from this mythical danger go right ahead. You certainly have that right. But I’ll continue tossing apples, peaches and other fruit, including seeds, to my chickens because they enjoy the treat. The plum tree is already in the run so they can get that themselves.

Good to know thank you for sharing your experience