What are your favorite chicken treats and why?

[BaronVonP]

Mine love grapes more than anything else, even more than dried mealworms.

 

[HollyWoods]

Of the things I've given my girls, none of the above. My girls prefer steak above all else (duh! ) . They've also enjoyed freezer burnt trout, salmon, tuna, fresh watermelon, zucchini, broccoli, tomato and kale.

ETA:... and corn on the cob, raw and cooked.

I gave mine chicken and rice the other day. It felt so wrong, but they thought it was so right.

 

[barred2rock]

Mine love grapes more than anything else, even more than dried mealworms.

Raisins will be enjoyed as well.

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

Hey all, I'm curious about chicken treats and if there's any that you've noticed your chickens like more or you think make tastier eggs. I think chicken treats would be nice, but they're so darn expensive!

Also, what are your thoughts on feeding chickens treats and in what frequency should it be done? What is your splurge chicken treat that you do every once in a while and how often do you do it?

Please comment any treats or things that you specifically like!

Disclosure: A lot of this is opinionated... I am not an expert or animal nutritionist.

Most treats should generally be not a prevalent part in a chicken's diet... However, I believe that some treats are good. I would say, when you do give your chickens treats (I give mine some treats every day ), they should be healthy and something at least close to what chickens (jungle fowl) consumed in the wild (variety is best):

Fruit (cores, peelings, melon rinds, dried fruit, etc...), vegetables (lettuce cores, corn, squash, etc...), seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, flax, etc... Wild bird-seed is a big hit with my flock), whole grains (sprouted grains, oats, millet, ect...) insects (worms, bugs, arachnids, grubs, ect...). Cultured dairy treats (yogurt, kefir, ect...) are also great because they promote healthy intestinal flora as well as supply calcium (as well as other minerals) and protein... Little bonuses for egg shell and feather quality. Chickens are also omnivores... a little meat now and then will definitely not hurt them at all. However, I highly do not advise feeding chickens moldy food or meat that is out of date.

Things I would advise to avoid :

Legumes. Chickens do not digest them well... A chicken nutritionist informed me of that. No joke. Over consumption of legumes in chickens causes pasty manure.

Raw rice... it can swell in the chickens' stomachs... (so I have heard).

Large quantities of corn... Corn is healthy... in moderate quantities... but it lacks all the nutrients chickens need... so corn as a long-term staple can lead to deficiency... the same can also be applied to some other grains (particularly refined ones like white rice) and potatoes.

Again, I am no expert... I hope this is helpful anyways though.

 

[TexasSam]

I give mine some cracked corn a couple times a day. Just a handfull though. It makes a nice change from laying pellets and they love it. Also, I give them any extra veggies or fruits I might have that I don't eat myself. Try not to overdo it on the treats though.

Also don't give them citrus or bananas

 

[TexasSam]

Disclosure: A lot of this is opinionated... I am not an expert or animal nutritionist.

Most treats should generally be not a prevalent part in a chicken's diet... However, I believe that some treats are good. I would say, when you do give your chickens treats (I give mine some treats every day ), they should be healthy and something at least close to what chickens (jungle fowl) consumed in the wild (variety is best):

Fruit (cores, peelings, melon rinds, dried fruit, etc...), vegetables (lettuce cores, corn, squash, etc...), seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, flax, etc... Wild bird-seed is a big hit with my flock), whole grains (sprouted grains, oats, millet, ect...) insects (worms, bugs, arachnids, grubs, ect...). Cultured dairy treats (yogurt, kefir, ect...) are also great because they promote healthy intestinal flora as well as supply calcium (as well as other minerals) and protein... Little bonuses for egg shell and feather quality. Chickens are also omnivores... a little meat now and then will definitely not hurt them at all. However, I highly do not advise feeding chickens moldy food or meat that is out of date.

Things I would advise to avoid :

Legumes. Chickens do not digest them well... A chicken nutritionist informed me of that. No joke. Over consumption of legumes in chickens causes pasty manure.

Raw rice (it can swell in the chickens' stomachs).

Large quantities of corn... Corn is healthy... in moderate quantities... but it lacks all the nutrients chickens need... so corn as a long-term staple can lead to deficiency... the same can also be applied to some other grains (particularly refined ones like white rice) and potatoes.

Again, I am no expert... I hope this is helpful though.

Boiled eggs and sprouted lentils are really good also. Never raw eggs only cooked

 

[User395221]

Raw rice (it can swell in the chickens' stomachs).

I remember researching this when I read it before, and I don't think that's the case.

I get boxes of veggie scraps. I just chuck the whole lot in there. The girls don't touch some things. I don't know whether it's because they know they are "bad" for chickens or they just don't like them, but I just remove them when they've picked all the good stuff out.

A "treat" that the chickens just help themselves to is the plumbago. They seem to really like the new growth on them.

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

I

I remember researching this when I read it before, and I don't think that's the case.

I get boxes of veggie scraps. I just chuck the whole lot in there. The girls don't touch some things. I don't know whether it's because they know they are "bad" for chickens or they just don't like them, but I just remove them when they've picked all the good stuff out.

A "treat" that the chickens just help themselves to is the plumbago. They seem to really like the new growth on them.

Didn't know what plumbago meant... so I looked it up... my dictionary says it is an old term graphite but it can also mean a flowering shrub... I am just really curious and I love words... Is it like a saying or something too?

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

Also don't give them citrus or bananas

I have never heard not to feed chickens bananas before but that sounds interesting... Are they bad for chickens? (Just curious )

 

[User395221]

Sorry, the flowering shrub. The chooks have been "tip-pruning" it for me. They love the new growth on it.
This is what the new growth looks like.

This is what it looks like when eaten by chickens

This is a bush. You can see the top (normal) compared to the bottom (eaten by chickens)