Sugar???? also, what can't chickens eat????

[joebwe25]

Can chickens taste sugar?
I've heard that they can't.

 

[joebwe25]

I would like to know what chickens can't eat.
As in what's bad for them.

 

[SpottedCrow]

Chocolate: What female is gonna give up their chocolate during that time of the month?
Alcohol: The original Coq Au Vin...not pretty.
Caffeine: Would you really want a high strung Leghorn on a coffee high?
Milk, because chickens are lactose intolerant. Seriously.

 

[okiechick57]

Quote:

 

[skeeter9]

Now I'm confused!! IF chickens are lactose intolerant, then why does practically everyone on this forum feed them yogurt as a treat? Does the lactose somehow change when milk is made into yogurt?

Lori

 

[LindaN]

This is not a chicken topic, but I'm responding to skeeter9's question about the difference between yogurt and milk to the lactose-intolerant.

Yogurt has been cultured -- meaning, bacteria have been introduced to the milk that digest some of the milk sugars. One of those sugars they digest is lactose. So, if you're lactose-intolerant like me, yogurt is just fine.

Now as for chickens being lactose-intolerant, I'm not sure I understand that. Could it have been a joke?

I was just reading "Living with Chickens" and it's noted that in the past chickens were often fed leftover and sour milk.

 

[Pine Grove]

been feeding buttermilk for 25 yrs. nothing better to replace gut friendly bacteria after antibiotic therapy. with yogurt their feathers seem to dry after two or three days feeding..I know several ppl that feed milk products and have been for years

 

[wegotchickens]

If they can't taste sugar, why do they target fruit goodies before any others? Can't just be color, since often the veggies are the same color...

 

[dlhunicorn]

Quote:
I did not realize that buttermilk had probiotic bacteria in it? (I do understand that it is low in lactose though),,,chickens do not have the enzyme lactase to process lactose (also many "bad" bacteria such as E. coli use the milk as a "feed source":
http://www.albertaclassic.net/chalmers1.php
Gordon A Chalmers, DVM
..."The presence of this lactose in the intestine can draw fluids from the bloodstream into the intestine, and may result in diarrhoea and dehydration .... E. coli on the other hand are known to be lactose fermenters, that is, they actually use lactose as a nutrient in their life processes. For this reason then, it is my opinion that the use of lactose when E. coli infections are occurring should be avoided because this sugar simply aids these organisms to thrive and multiply in great numbers. For this reason, I would NOT recommend that lactose be used in drinkers when birds are affected with adenovirus + E. coli infections, or to help prevent E. coli problems...... avoid the use of lactose when you are dealing with or trying to prevent E. coli problems....."
as E.Coli is present in small amount (non-pathogenic) in the "natural" gut flora of the chicken, then it is extremely unwise in my view to give them any milk products which may aid in their overwhelming your bird at moments of stress and making them ill (E.Coli=Collibacillosis)
... yogurts lactose has already been "worked out" of the product during the process that "makes" yogurt... it is the probiotics you are after (the bifida cultures) in yogurt...

 

[Peaguy]

dlhunicorn, Pay close attention the next time your in the milk aisle and you probably will notice that the buttermilk cartons... 9 out of 10 SHOULD say "Cultured Buttermilk" as buttermilk sold today is a cultured product just as yogurt is... meaning enzymes have benn introduced along with milk whey (dried powdered 2%)Milk and then re-pastuerized at a slightly higher temperature to activate the enzymes/ culture to encourage growth/development and reproduction.
My understand of "traditional"/true buttermilk is that it was the milky water left over after the butter was churned. Pretty watery and absolutely devoid of any fat content (i.e. flavor) and this was what was traditionally was used in the making of such lucious deserts calling for buttermilk, Such as buttermilk pie... etc. Nothing was wasted on the farms of old! Guess a good number of pigs/hogs were also slopped with copius amounts of "buttermilk" also... Dunno what all it was used for. I could be wrong but this has been my understanding for many years after 11 years in the dairy/fluid milk processing industry.