Don't poison your chicken with the wrong treat!
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- Опубликовано: 5 фев 2025
- Chickens do like a nibble on plants, seeds and many other things, but whilst some are tasty treats, some can be toxic to poultry. In this short video we look at what is safe to offer to your flock
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I noticed my birds feasting on some weeds that sprouted into several blades covered with zipper-like seeds on long stalks. It was goose grass! I saw them getting a few seeds at a time as the stalks blew about and wondered what they'd do with a full bowl of just the seeds. They went NUTS!!! Now I harvest goose grass seeds for them every late summer.
@@Susie_Floozie We give them armfuls of the stuff. They eat seeds, flowers and foliage just leaving the stringy stems! Honestly it seems like their absolutely favourite Summer treat - and it's free 😁
@@EnglishCountryLife Haha, YES! My neighbors allow me to rid their yards of the weeds and transplant them in my backyard. I'm making my birds a whole meadow of goose grass just for their pleasure!
@Susie_Floozie Chicken heaven 🤣
Once again, a very informative and attractive video on sustaining one’s flock of chickens.
Many thanks.
Sincerely,
Larry Clarence Lewis
London, Ontario, Canada.
@@larrylewis3573 Thanks Larry!
Great seeing you. Very informative as usual. Here in Aus dried mealworms are allowed and encouraged as a source of protein (in small quantities) - the chickens love them!
@@davidcollier185 I'm sure they do! Unfortunately UK ones are generally imported & fed on some questionable stuff!
very informative thank you for this
Glad you enjoyed it!
Mine get mealworm, have since they became egg laying, they get sunflower seed, AND cooked vegetables, fresh fruit, and I've NEVER had a sick chicken, no weak egg shells, and they've had COOKED potatoes, onions,green pepper in stuffing leftover that I would still eat, never food from ppl that I wouldnt...
Yes but you are in the US where food laws are very different
@@Damselfly54315 I'm sure the law is different where you are 🙂
@@Catherinemab yes!
@@EnglishCountryLife yes, but even still, I read WHAT my birds need and what they don't, and I protect my food source at all cost!
@@EnglishCountryLife Thank you, I appreciate these kinds of videos❣️
After reading the comments I now understand why you said not to give meat or anything from the kitchen. It’s due to the laws in your country and not because it’s unhealthy for the chickens.
What do people use to up protein for them in the winter if not using meat or meal worms etc?
@@phenixjiraliving Generally pellets with soya protein
@ thank you! I’ve heard different things regarding soy coming through a chickens egg. For example, I am allergic to soy but so far have had no ill effects from the chicken feed they get that has soy in it. Have you heard one way or the other?
@phenixjiraliving We haven't heard of any problems
Where I live in the high plains of the USA we have a problem with deer and elk with Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) which is known as BSE in cattle, scrapie in sheep, and CJD in humans. From my reading, I understand that chickens (birds in general) don't get sick from it, but can pass it through their gut onto the ground where it can be picked up by grazing animals. It can be spread between grazing animals through the slobber left on the ground.
So it is the law in the USA as well, that processed chicken feed cannot contain animal byproducts. But USA laws are less stringent (non existent?) as far as feeding scraps from home kitchens or restaurants to domestic flocks. I'm sure factory farmed birds have stricter regulations, but right now they're mainly focused on bird flu, which is a huge problem (it's spread into dairy cows now and becoming contagious to people).
We should all be proactive with our flocks because we don't want to lose our birds and because their health will affect our own, our families' and our communities' health.
@@oldauntzibby4395 Well said!
Chickens are unfortunately not allowed to feed on mealworms because it's assumed they're imported, including fresh ones bizarrely. However, calci worms (bsfl) have been approved for poultry so long as they're produced locally, and so long as they're fed only on preconsumer foodstuffs like vegetable scraps - no meat/catering scraps.
@@iggzistentialism8458 I've heard that but not tried it personally
I buy a bag of plain alfalfa for horses from my local farm supply. The chickens love it when I put it in a hanging basket. Great source of vit A etc. The other is rolled oats, this gives them a good slow release energy. On cold nights I will put some maze into their feed to help them keep warm, not too much otherwise they get fat! Cochins and brahmas can be real guts when it comes to food. As to meal worms, I breed my own and feed them on vegetable fat, oat meal, soft apples etc, on a bed of sawdust, no animal products (therefor meets regulations) The birds love chasing them as a very special treat.
I have three of the smaller Cochins that love garden with me when I digging over the soil or moving wood etc., they love the bugs and wood lice!
@@waikanaebeach Love that alfalfa tip!
Important to know! ❤
@@sgmarr Definitely!
Hmm, I’ve heard and read somewhere that you should not give any of the “nightshades” ( tomatoes, peppers etc ) to chickens as it’s poisonous to them 🧐
The toxic compounds (solanine) in these plants is concentrated in the foliage which should definitely not be fed, the fruits are safe however
Mine love all the craps!
Azalea is poisonous to chickens I have read. I believe this explains the death of one of my chickens. I had three large azaleas in the chicken yard planted long before I got the chickens. Then after getting my chickens one inexplicably began acting sick with grey comb and lethargy . A month later she died. After googling like crazy I saw that azalea is poisonous. I think the azalea could explain the death. I dug the bushes up and replanted them outside of the fenced chicken area.
Oh no 😢. There are so many plants that can be toxic! We have lupins & foxgloves that are as well. So sorry to hear about your hen.
Our birds, being French, have different culinary preferences. They ignore green vegetables, pellets made into mash, apples and pears, and instead they go for sweetcorn and cooked pasta. We also give them croissants and jam ! 😉 only joking. They may be lovely birds but there's no way they're getting my croissants ! I don't think they would like garlic but they have been known to scoff snails and the occasional frog. I don't agree with people eating frogs legs, just think of all those poor frogs having to go around in wheelchairs.
@@chrishamilton-wearing3232 🤣
Lol my chickens eat mice, frogs, snakes besides bugs of all kinds.
@@lindawisner3525 Ours aren't allowed snakes - they are rare over here 🤣. Ours eat all the rest!
Why no meal worms? I thought they are a great snack. Every chicken keeper on the internet feeds them 😂😢
Because it is breaking the law in the UK and EU to feed meat and meat by products to domestic livestock that may enter the human food chain
@@Krissi_Avocado The law in the UK prevents feeding animal products to livestock. I'm sure those who fed catering waste to cattle thought it would do no harm, but that is why the law was changed after the BSE outbreak
@@CatherinemabLocally produced calci (black soldier fly) is allowed by DEFRA if they've only eaten waste veg/spent grain/some other things - not meat or cooked. Strange that local live mealworms have more restrictions.
I thought live uk produced ones are ok if they are only fed veg - dried/imported ones are not allowed as they could have been fed on meat or refuse.
@hollythebordercollie2257 Are there UK produced mealworms? I've not seen those - I have seen (but not tried) soldier beetle larvae. We did check the rules and mealworms are specifically mentioned
You missed uncooked beans on the no-no list. The no-go list is pretty similar for chickens, dogs, cats. No citrus, no avocado, no onion, no uncooked beans, no green potatoes (cooked okay).
I would challenge you on the 'Mad Cow Disease' thing. Chickens are omnivores, they eat meat all the time when they find it (worms, insects, mice etc). The thing about cows/sheep, they are herbivores, not designed to process meat, so frankly, even if you eat your chickens, I wouldn't stress about it. Just don't feed your ruminants meat.
The one thing I would say though, don't feed them too much meat, they get runny/mucky butt if fed too much protein (including cheese). Less than 5% of their diet. My girls have primarily a whole seed diet (mixed seeds), plus veg, plus left over cat food or sometimes cheese just to put them in a frenzy. Also in summer (not usually an issue in the UK, LOL) be sparing on the sugary fruits on hot days (watermelon, grapes, etc). I am back in Australia now, so it is an issue on hot days.
Good tip about feeding treats later in the day (I feed mine treats in late afternoon). It is treat time now.
Good point on the beans. It's not our rule on the meat and BSE, its the law here
@@EnglishCountryLife The government do actually know the difference between ruminants and omnivores? Seems not. It is really about time that everyone kicked back on government over reach and regulation for the sake of regulation.
All governments are getting out of control. Somehow, people got fooled into thinking that the government is 'the boss', and not public servants, that are supposed to work for the people. Yes my high horse, but unless we collectively say "enough!" to their BS, it will never end.
Anyway, give them cheese instead of meat. If I was still back in the UK, I'd be saying "stuff the nonsense".