Treat question

[thelostwolfe]

Hi guys!

Fairly new here, but our flock just went into the coop and we're so excited to see them grow up (they're 8 weeks today). Someone told me spinach is bad for my girls, but someone else told me it was okay. Consensus? Also, I was giving them egg yokes (cooked and smashed) but what about the whites? Are those okay too?

 

[nchls school]

Hi guys!

Fairly new here, but our flock just went into the coop and we're so excited to see them grow up (they're 8 weeks today). Someone told me spinach is bad for my girls, but someone else told me it was okay. Consensus? Also, I was giving them egg yokes (cooked and smashed) but what about the whites? Are those okay too?

I have used boiled eggs for years; hard boiled shells and all-mashed together-with the whites. I also use spinach and other green leaf vegetables, carrot, broccoli, meal worms. One of the favorite treats is a chunk of sod with dirt and worms with anything else that might be hiding in it.

 

[Jensownzoo]

Spinach has oxalates that may bind some calcium, BUT when given in moderation, it's fine as with most things.

The egg whites are best offered cooked because of a compound called avidin that can bind up biotin. Egg yolks are fine cooked, but cooking does destroy some of the vitamins in them. Again, if it is an occasional treat, neither of these facts matter...they'll get enough vitamins (including biotin) on different days.