what other foods can chickens eat? i need help.

[dlhunicorn]

my rule-of-thumg is that if ist is not suitable for human consumption it is not getting fed to my birds...
Warning on ay table scraps: birds are vERY sensitive to salt and this is the danger from table scraps (canned vegetables for instance in my mind are not suitable for this reason)... anything that has salt in it is off the list for feeding to my birds.

 

[hoosierhen]

Mine LOVE warm steamed rice with a spoonful or 2 of cottage cheese mixed in.

 

[slystr]

Mine LOVE LOVE LOVE pecans. I have a tree in the backyard and if I crush a fallen nut the girls will come running from all over the yard and peck my foot off.!

 

[Crazy4Chicks]

Mine will tear your arm off for oatmeal - if it is not in thier pan fast enough they will jump at my legs !
also mine get anything from a friends garden that she doesn't want - when her plants start to die off she pulls them sometimes with tomatoes still on the vine and we throw that in the run.
so far I have given mine : tomatoes,watermelon,oatmeal,pumpkins,bread,fresh corn,cat food,canned peaches,squash. They love it all they dont hesitate to try new food i know will let new food sit there for awhile- not my crew!

Julie

 

[crazy4chicsinBC]

Mine love oatmeal,squash seeds, all my salad scraps, cooked leftover potatos, carrots...not so keen on cauliflower tho!! Egg shells they love to peck at, apple peels or cores. Not a whole lot they have turned their nose up at. when they see me coming they can't move quick enough to get to me to see what yummy treats I may be bringing!

 

[cmom]

What age is appropriate to give "treats", table scraps etc. to the birds. I too am new at this. I have 6 RIR's.

 

[SeaChick]

We started giving a few treats at about 3-4 weeks. Plain yogurt, cottage cheese, whole grain bread, finely-chopped fruit. Don't forget if you give treats you must also provide grit (unless they are free-ranging)... we used fine sand at that age, then "chick grit" from the feed store when a little older.

I discovered something our (big) girls LOVE: sardines!!! They went MAD for them. Lots of good Omega-3s in there, too!

Stacey

 

[cmom]

My chickens do not free range but have a nice run attached to the coop where they dust and pick at things.

 

[NJfarmer]

Is the oatmeal cooked or raw when you feed your chickens???

 

[picklespickles]

i have been eating buckwheat instead of oatmeal for breakfast lately. that has been going over well. i have put out raw or cooked otameal. they eat both.

old refried beans were a big hit this morning also.

when my neighbors gave me old vegetables from their garden that had gotten too woody (like zuchinis) i stuck in the freezer this summer. now, i stick in the microwave in the morning to defrost and toss outside. yesterday i put outside watermelon which i thought the chickens would go for. they usually do. but this time the geese beat them to it and wouldn't give sway for an instant. the chickens look wild as they steal a piece of the red watermelon meat and run across the yard with it. pretty funny.