Backyard Pet Chickens a Beginners Guide: How to Raise Hens in a Small Suburban Yard by Dr John Stone

Author:Dr John Stone
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Urban, Gardening & Horticulture, Gardening & Landscape Design, Animal Care & Pets, Hobbies & Home, Pets & Animal Care, Crafts, By Technique, Birds, Techniques
ISBN: 1497585856
Published: 2014-04-10T04:00:00+00:00

An Araucana chicken egg

Chapter 5

How & What to Feed Your Chickens

Ideally, chickens should be allowed to free range as this allows them to eat what they choose and as they like to eat weeds and insects, this is great for the gardener as well. However there are time when it is not practical to let chicken roam, for example, in the event of bad weather or the presence of predators such as feral dogs. In any event, you will need to provide extra food and water for your chickens at these times.

Like humans, chickens should be fed in moderation. The majority of a chicken’s dietary intake will come from the food they eat. A good choice is “layer pellets” as this feed has been specially formulated to provide your chickens with all the necessary nutrition they need to lay eggs and remain healthy.

As stated in a previous chapter, chickens love many types of kitchen scraps as well, however it can be difficult to know what is good for them and what can cause the harm, so I have compiled a list of what you should and should not feed them.

What You CAN feed Chickens

Fruits

•Apples

•Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries •Banana (no peel)

•Grapes

•Cherries

•Melons

•Peaches

Vegetables

•Cooked beans (never raw)

•Beets (tops as well)

•Corn

•Cabbage

•Asparagus

•Sprouts

•Carrots

•Cabbage

•Cucumbers

•Eggplant

•Garlic (adding raw cloves to the drinking water will boost

your chickens immune system

•Peas

•Bell peppers

•Cooked potatoes (never the raw peels)

•Tomatoes •Cooked turnips •Pumpkin

•Popped popcorn kernels (unsalted)

Dairy

•Plain/vanilla yoghurt •All cheese

Grains

•All breads •Cooked pasta •Cooked rice

•Unsweetened breakfast cereals •Cooked Grits •Cooked or raw oats

What you Should AVOID Feeding Your Chickens

•Sweetened food •Salty food

•Raw potato peel (can be poisonous to birds)

•Citrus i.e. Lemons or oranges (due to the vitamin C content this may cause feather pecking)

•Avocado (poisonous to birds)

•Rhubarb (poisonous to birds)

•Onions

•Uncooked beans (can be poisonous to birds)

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