Suet Blocks for Chickens ????

[Frizzled]

Is it OK to give chickens suet blocks made for wild birds? The local farm store has them for .59 and .79 cents apiece.

 

[ranchhand]

Yes, and it helps boost fats and carbs to keep them warmer. I make my own now- very easy and I can put whatever I want in.

I usually melt 2 pounds of lard, (careful, do NOT leave the pan unwatched!) and let it cool until starting to set up again. Then I stir in scratch, bird seed, oatmeal, cornmeal, dried fruit, sunflower seeds....just whatever I have on hand. Sometimes I add cayenne pepper. That mix gets poured into a half gallon oj or milk carton and refrigerated until hardened. I peel/tear off the carton, slice with a serrated knife and the chickens LOVE it! It's great watching them struggle to get the biggest piece and hide it.

I give it to them twice a week, so it's a treat only.

 

[plight79]

Thanks...I have been wondering this myself.

 

[LynneP]

I use the commercial ones though I occasionally get ground suet from the meat store and mix with peanut butter and lard and seed...

I keep the commercial blocks in my refrigerator and bring them to the coop in winter and/or if a bird is in molt.

The birds love it!

This one is on a wall over the nest boxes where there is a platform:

 

[Frizzled]

Thanks for the help, I thought this was a good price but wanted to make sure before I bought too many of them.

 

[chickndoglover]

So it is ok for them to have the lard, I looked at some before but thought maybe it was too much fat for them? I guess in the winter for treat now and then ( to include with the rest of the treats the spoiled brats get!)

 

[rebel13dlc]

I work as a seed mixer at a wild bird food plant and on all our pakaging it says for wild birds only, but I assume thats to cover our butts. I used some cardinal pressed seed, just smashed it up and they loved the black oil and cracked corn, i got a bucnh of year round suet I'm going to give them

 

[vstoltzfus]

I save the fat from the meat I cook for my family in a container in the freezer. After I roast a chicken or cook some burgers in a skillet I just pour the fat in the container. When I need to make the suet I just melt it all down, add the seeds, oats, etc. and then freeze it in a loaf pan. Then I just slice it as I need it. The slices fit great in my suet feeders.