Soggy cereal? and a shrew?

[Yardfarm Family]

My kids always leave cereal in the bowl with milk, instead of dumping it can I give it to my hens. It's always organic, non sugary kind with organic milk...Also this morning there is a dead shrew in the pen, do I leave it for them to eat or is it not safe? In free range they'd come across rodents and eat them right? Thanks ahead for any responses.

 

[Imp]

My kids always leave cereal in the bowl with milk, instead of dumping it can I give it to my hens. It's always organic, non sugary kind with organic milk...Also this morning there is a dead shrew in the pen, do I leave it for them to eat or is it not safe? In free range they'd come across rodents and eat them right? Thanks ahead for any responses.

The cereal is OK.

I wouldn't let them have the shrew, only because I don't know what it died from.

Imp

 

[my sunwolf]

I'd be cautious about the cereal if it's fortified, there might be too many vitamins for the chickens to handle. At least, try not to let them feed it every day! I always throw my flock any mice/voles/etc. that my cats catch and don't eat--just make sure your neighbors aren't using poison.

 

[donrae]

I'd feed them the cereal, and put it in a bowl so they can also drink any milk left. Or give the kids less cereal lol.

My birds eat whole mice, etc, but I've not had much luck getting them to eat moles, etc. Esp if they're already dead. I don't see any harm in trying, though.

 

[sourland]

The short tailed shrew has a venom in it's saliva that is toxic to mammals. I don't know what effect it has upon birds, but would recommend not letting the chickens eat it.

 

[Imp]

The short tailed shrew has a venom in it's saliva that is toxic to mammals. I don't know what effect it has upon birds, but would recommend not letting the chickens eat it.

Hmmm, learn something new every day.

I was just thinking a d'con dinner or anti-freeze smoothie; or parasites or botulism.

Imp

 

[Yardfarm Family]

Thanks everyone! Good point about potential death from poison, we are next to conservation so I don't think the shrew died from that but you never know. Chickens didn't eat it so I found it and chucked it in the woods this morning....Ya know, when we first got chickens I had no clue how truly beneficial they were to my family..what we don't eat goes to them or the compost and in turn they feed us back and the compost they produce feeds my garden which also feeds us. What an awesome circle of benefits! I love my girls!