Snail shells for calcium supplement?

[utahmethodist]

According to the reading I have done on the internet, land snails' shells are mostly calcium carbonate with a thin protein layer.

 

[patvetzal]

What about all the fresh water clam shells that I find in piles under our dock? The kids pick them up anyway so might as well keep the food chain going.....

 

[timco]

We are up by the U and have 6 chickens and LOTS of snails...we have to use a good amount of 'bait' so the shells would have to be boiled & baked as suggested. I have killed 6 rats this year so far. I am glad the mayor of SLC has been very vocal about chickens being OK in SLC. There have been many articles on having chickens lately in the paper and it seems to be a hot item this summer....

Tim

 

[utahmethodist]

Hey, Tim! We're in between the U and Westminster in the Harvard-Yale area. There definitely seems to be a chicken trend around here. I just got two pullets this spring but since then I've met so many people in Salt Lake who either have chickens or are interested in getting some.

But, back to snails. I don't put out any snail bait so I hadn't even considered the fact that my neighbors might and that some of these snail shells may have come from their contaminated yards. However, these shells look like they've been in my garage for a long time (no I haven't cleaned it out in a while ) so maybe any poison would have dissipated? Maybe I should soak them and let them dry out in the sun before cooking them?

Now I'm going to have to think about this a little more.

 

[timco]

Well, after having a BBQ this evening, the yellow jackets seem to be the most common thing in the yard...bad year for them...

Glad to see so many folks in SLC with chickens. There was a great article in today's paper in the opinion section.

Tim

 

[JennsPeeps]

I have to say that I'm highly disappointed with this thread. Here's why:

This weekend I found 2 small snails in my yard waste bin. "Woo hoo... free chicken treats," I said to myself as I ran to the back yard.

Chickens wanted NOTHING to do with the snails. I tried and tried to get them to learn that these were food (snails are a very recent nuisance in my yard).

You got my hopes up that chickens would erradicate my yard of snails!! Darn you!!!

 

[utahmethodist]

Now, now, take heart. My chickens took about two months before they figured out that snails=food. It's not like they're dolphins or chimpanzees. They might need quite a bit of show and tell before they get it. It helps if you smash it for them the first few times so they get a better idea of the tasty treat inside.

 

[JennsPeeps]

<-- note tongue in cheek