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- #31
OstrichEmu
Chirping
Where I live, things are often backwards. Not sure if you're familiar with the term '' squatter camps'' but look it up, especially south African squatter camps. That's generally the way a lot of people raise chickens, but not everyone but alot. Hence unconventional foods being somewhat cheaper for the average Joe.' I am fortunate enough to live in a more upscale rural area. Farm, equine estate... Fortunate is an understatement. 'Real Deal' ' types of animal feeds are incredibly highly priced and mostly targeted at large scale farmers. We used to live and work on an ostrich ranch, you will not believe the price of a 50kg bag of feed.Yes, peanuts should be fine. They are a fairly good source of protein, and I think they have the right amino acids to pair well with grains (@U_Stormcrow am I right that peanuts, being a legume, have amino acids that help balance the ones usually present in grains?)
And as @Perris pointed out, any kind of meat/fish/milk/cheese are good protein sources too (yes including dried crickets, but dried bugs are usually overpriced in the USA, and might be in your area. If actual meat or fish is cheaper, it is certainly fine to use.)
Yes, also fine.
Chickens can eat almost everything that people eat. If you offer them everything, and let them pick through to eat what they want, they almost always make safe choices. So I wouldn't stress too much about which things are "safe" for chickens to eat. Nothing is going to kill them with just a bite or two, and they are usually smart enough to make the right decision by that point. Chickens that are used to having food scraps and foraging for part of their own feed are usually very good at this (because they practice all day long!)
The ones in that photo do look like layer-types, so hopefully the ones in question are suitable too.
If it's OK with the owner, there is no real need to be sneaky
And I would definitely check prices-- you mentioned peanuts being cheap, which is not something I would have thought of (because they aren't really cheap where I live.) Chicken food is cheap where I live, which is why it is my default advice, but it might or might not be cheap where you are. There more expensive the chicken feed is, the more it is worth looking carefully at what else is available.
That's why I'm really eager to look at a fresh, non-commercial diet for these chickens. I'll go bankrupt
honestly any tips, tricks and treats will be so helpful. I will, however, invest in a bag of feed. Crickets are even cheaper than peanuts so I'll be grabbing those too as a snack for the ladies and gent.
