Treats?

[lil'chickies]

I see a few people give their babies oatmeal as a treat. Do you cook it first or prepare it in any other way? Also, how in the world do you give them yogurt without them just walking all in it? Any hints?

 

[Mahonri]

I have fencing where I can put the straight yogurt cups with lips (not the tapered cups).

I put up three yesterday so that everyone could get a taste... two berry and one peach. They prefer the berry.

By all means, cooked oatmeal.

Yesterday I also gave them a couple of cans of gourmet salmon. (adds omega 3 essential oils to your eggs)

They love me.

 

[PortageGirl]

Quote:
That'll be the day I paid for canned salmon for chickens Mahonri! You be crazy!!! Our AK members have access to LOTS of salmon skin/bones/scraps, which I'd give em after cleaning a day's catch for the freezer or the smoker.

If you're talking about baby chicks Lil'chickie, before they get stuff like oatmeal, (yes cooked and cooled, they love it) they need GRIT!!! Tractor Supply and most other feed stores have extra fine grit for chicks this time of year, if not, you can use grit for canaries etc... also, best they aslo get some yogurt first too, because they love it and it's good for their digestive system too, but only PLAIN yogurt please! with no fruit or sugar substitute in it, most plain yogurt doesn't really have actual sugar in it.

[edit] yeah, yogurt gets messy, hey, they're chickens!! don't give em too much at a time, shallow small dish or tray sort of thing,

 

[brizzlequizzle]

I tried giving plain yogurt to my chicks, but none of them liked. Some of them stepped in it and had yogurt feet for a while.

I think it might be too bitter for them, because the ones that tried it just shook their heads and ran off.

 

[PortageGirl]

They acquire the taste for it, some people mix in some crumbles. The healthy bacteria in it is good for them but the sugery stuff in flavored ones isn't.

 

[cmom]

I buy 50 lb bags of rolled oats at my feed store for the horses and chickens. I don't cook it I give it to them dry right out of the bag. They all love the oats. They think it's candy.

 

[cmom]

A chicken's food goes, as is, into the crop, where it is slowly funneled into a very small " stomach" for some digestive additives--then to the Gizzard, where it is 'chewed', that is, ground into material that can be digested as it moves into the intestines and so on. The Gizzard is best able to break down whole grains and other chunky bits that they eat when full of grit. Longest lasting grit is Granite, that lasts well. All other rock and stone is so much softer, that it wears down fast and that is why granite grit is best choice, works really well for best utilization of feeds. My baby chicks are given free choice and they choose it with pleasure, baby grit is fine Granite, as soon as they are given anything besides Starter Crumbles. Their tiny gizzards are at optimum function at an early age. I feed my birds Starter/Grower feed until they start to lay then I switch over to layer feed. If I have any Starter/Grower feed left over I mix it in with the layer feed.

I give mine almost everything. Here is the link to BYC Chicken Treat Chart.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=2593-Treats_Chart

 

[TXmom]

Mine didn't like yogurt the first time either. But, I gave them some yesterday...I actually mixed some of the crumbles in with the plain yogurt and spread it out on a paper plate. They weren't too sure about it, but then a little while later it was all gone...so I guess they decided they like it...LOL.

I also give mine hard boiled eggs, crickets and mealworms for treats...and Parakeet grit from Walmart.