Quinoa for Chickens?

[micstrachan]

Hello,
I have a sick hen with a poor appetite. She is not eating feed as far as I can tell, but will forage for greens and seeds, as well as eating treats of whole grains. I’ve been allowing this pretty freely the past couple weeks for the entire flock, and this will pose all kinds of other health issues if I let it go on. So it needs to stop.

I’d like to continue offer long some things to help keep her appetite stimulated. Is quinoa safe for chickens? Raw, sprouted, cooked? I’ve already tried damp feed, raw egg, cooked egg, sardines, tuna, microgreens, chopped kale, frozen/thawed berries, canned (no sodium) corn. Nothing is working g except the seed and grain goodies. She’s still dropping weight, too. Keep in mind, this is a hen who normally only likes her good quality feed along with free ranging.

Thanks for any insight.

 

[BYCforlife]

Quinoa should be safe, and I would recommend cooked or sprouted. Is your hen separate from the others? Typically (as I'm sure you know) chickens will eat anything if there are other chickens trying to taste it too. It's a competition. If she's alone, she'll most likely only eat what she wants. Hopefully your hen is still doing okay!