Now, your baby chickens are all grown up and ready to lay eggs. You’ve done all the research about what kind of feed is best for layers. Each morning you carefully balance their diet. All the work is in anticipation for the day that your little feather friends leaves a few little surprises: little yummy gifts that will be turned into fried egg sandwiches for lunch.
Chickens are great because they are more than just breakfast makers. They are the central players in your backyard compost system. Here a few farm side tips for your urban layers on how to best utilize your chickens as composters.
Chickens are like any animals and they have their own tastes. What one flock likes to eat another flock may turn their beaks up to. So, you will have to do a little experimenting.
The kooky but lovable goat lady next door feds her chickens raw goat milk. She believes it increases their protein and is the secret to their chicken’s good production. Purchasing raw milk is illegal in most states, while some states allow consumers to purchase straight from the farmer or join a co-op of consumers. You might want to just give them off the shelf milk that is about expire or the leftover milk from the kid’s breakfast.
My chickens love to eat leftover cooked rice. Corn on the cob makes them happily insane. I have given it to them raw or cooked. We even let them pick the cobs clean after dinner. Crushed egg shells put into their feed increases their calcium. Watermelon rinds get picked clean leaving a thin crust of the tough outer shell. Any of the melons are treats. Leftover cooked potatoes, carrots or other root crops keep them content. They loved the spinach growing in our garden (oops). They happily picked through any fruit or vegetables that were just past eatable. One of my favorite chicken hangouts is the compost pile. They happily pick out the seeds.
Experiment! Experiment! Experiment! Just remember that cheese or meat is usually not a good idea.
I always cut the leftovers into large pieces as chickens can’t get through tough skins without work. Too much work will cause the flock to lose interest.
Foods to stay away from include citrus fruit peels, raw root crops (potatoes, carrots, etc.), rye kennels, and curry. Tomatoes in large quantities are said to upset stomachs. Root crops cooked can be very popular – raw is simply hard from them to eat. An occasional apple is okay, but too many can throw off their digestion system. Chickens eating chicken should be avoided - especially the spinal cord and brain.
Don’t forget to let your flock break down your garden for you this fall! They will happily scratch you into some seriously fertile soil.
Source: BecauseAction.com
