Should I cook lentils and rice before feeding?

[Bettyboop7499]

This is a little frustrating..it should be fairly simple answer yes or no.

I will say I have no idea! But, if you think about nature NOTHING is cooked in natural forging. I think I'm just going to get a small bag throw a handful see if they eat it! I'm not going to feed anything I HAVE to cook first, I just don't have the time for that. As, an occasional treat sure but daily food-NO WAY! With my chicks I've noticed that they will not eat what they shouldn't. I accidentally threw raw potatoe peelings down because I forgot they shouldn't have them and they didn't touch them! That's when I remembered "oh, they aren't suppose to have those!"-so I raked them over for the pigs-they loved them! In my opinion, I think free ranging as early as possible also helps encourage their natural instincts-they are not solely reliant on me for food so they are not forced to eat whatever I give them. They will pick out of the food their most favorite First, then eat what they like, lastly, what they can. But, leave what they either can't eat or don't like. For example: they love sunflower seeds but not hemp seeds!

I truely appreciate those who say "I don't know but this is what I do" to be able to differentiate between preference and fact. This site is SO valuable to me in this new farming venture, I reference it almost daily and both info and community are equally valuable to me. I understand we are just doing what we can to help each other...this lentil question makes my head explode. I wonder if the best way to know is see if it is used in natural feed...

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I sure am thankful for BYC!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Anyone who insists on cooking rice before feeding it to chickens has been reading Ann Landers advice column too long.

You see it was Dear Abby's twin sister Ann Landers who "ADVISED" us not to throw rice at weddings because it would swell up in the crops of birds and cause them to explode like feathered hand grenades.

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/against-the-grain/

The biggest problem I have with this is that the State of Connecticut actually tried to ban the throwing, casting, or distribution of raw rice at weddings in the NUT-meg state.

 

[Bettyboop7499]

This is a little frustrating..it should be fairly simple answer yes or no.

I will say I have no idea! But, if you think about nature NOTHING is cooked in natural forging. I think I'm just going to get a small bag throw a handful see if they eat it! I'm not going to feed anything I HAVE to cook first, I just don't have the time for that. As, an occasional treat sure but daily food-NO WAY! With my chicks I've noticed that they will not eat what they shouldn't. I accidentally threw raw potatoe peelings down because I forgot they shouldn't have them and they didn't touch them! That's when I remembered "oh, they aren't suppose to have those!"-so I raked them over for the pigs-they loved them! In my opinion, I think free ranging as early as possible also helps encourage their natural instincts-they are not solely reliant on me for food so they are not forced to eat whatever I give them. They will pick out of the food their most favorite First, then eat what they like, lastly, what they can. But, leave what they either can't eat or don't like. For example: they love sunflower seeds but not hemp seeds!

I truely appreciate those who say "I don't know but this is what I do" to be able to differentiate between preference and fact. This site is SO valuable to me in this new farming venture, I reference it almost daily and both info and community are equally valuable to me. I understand we are just doing what we can to help each other...this lentil question makes my head explode. I wonder if the best way to know is see if it is used in natural feed...

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I sure am thankful for BYC!

That is so funny...I misspelled potato! I know exactly what happen I typed it out in the plural sense and just forgot to take off the 'e' with the 's' Every time I spell 'potato' I think of President Bush misspelling it...Now I'll think of myself!

 

[purple star]

Neither lentils or rice need to be cooked! Lentils and field peas or split peas can be safely fed to hens without cooking. Uncooked rice is an ingredient in many pigeon feeds. Cook them if you like, but it is not necessary.

Uncooked legumes are toxic. You need to sprout or cook to destroy toxic compound.

 

[joeshmo]

I've been feeding dry raw lentils to my flock of 150+ New Hampshire Red chickens for around 2 years. about 1/4 - 1/3 of their feed is lentils. And I have not seen any ill effects on the birds health or egg production. Fertility and health of their offspring is also apparently unaffected.

So whether or not they contain some kind of harmful compound when raw, I can say from experience that there are no short term ill effects. If all my birds suddenly die tomorrow I may have to rethink possible long term issues.

I will say, I have also noticed they go through stages where the birds will prefer the lentils and eat them even before the layer pellets. And then other times when they eat all the layer pellets first and then pick at the lentils.

In my experience chickens mostly avoid the things that they shouldn't eat. They are scavengers who know how to pick and choose.

I'd be curious to know what "they" say will happen to a chicken who eats too many uncooked lentils?... Has anyone heard what the actual issue could be? Everything I've seen just says they're toxic, but how or why is vague.

 

[EdgeC]

I've been feeding dry raw lentils to my flock of 150+ New Hampshire Red chickens for around 2 years. about 1/4 - 1/3 of their feed is lentils. And I have not seen any ill effects on the birds health or egg production. Fertility and health of their offspring is also apparently unaffected.

So whether or not they contain some kind of harmful compound when raw, I can say from experience that there are no short term ill effects. If all my birds suddenly die tomorrow I may have to rethink possible long term issues.

I will say, I have also noticed they go through stages where the birds will prefer the lentils and eat them even before the layer pellets. And then other times when they eat all the layer pellets first and then pick at the lentils.

In my experience chickens mostly avoid the things that they shouldn't eat. They are scavengers who know how to pick and choose.

I'd be curious to know what "they" say will happen to a chicken who eats too many uncooked lentils?... Has anyone heard what the actual issue could be? Everything I've seen just says they're toxic, but how or why is vague.

This needs to be more looked into, I have been cooking/sprouting mine. Lots of labor, most if not all sources say lentils (not peas/splitpeas/rice) has to be cooked or sprouted. I personally have fed very successfully peas(yellow/green)/Split peas/(Brown rice, white rice once) but I have huge access to a unlimited supply of lentils and if I don't need to sprout or cook them.... hundreds of hours over the years could be saved.