AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™

Ok so my chickyboos are 6 weeks old now , fully feathered and completely spoilt and looking good. I plan to let them out now full time into the outside yard (before it has been supervised as we have hawks around). I was wondering a couple of things. 1) when can I start them on food scraps and 2) what can I give them and what should I not be giving them? 3) I have heard of a homemade mix of bran and stuff I can make...has anyone done this or heard of it?

Thanks for the advice in advance!

nolliavac

when i got my girls they were 14 weeks & they refused to eat scraps, but after a couple of weeks they are starting to eat bits of bread......last time i had chooks i gave them pretty much anything.....from veg peelings - not raw potato peelings though, left over cereal, wet cat food, prawn shells - they love these, rice, pasta, i think your only limited by your imagination...BUT Never give tea bags, green potato skins, toffee, chewing gum, rotting meat or vegetables

others may be able to add more

I feed my trio:

A combination of Free Range Mix, Layer Pellets,

Warm Mash or left over porridge on a cold winter's morning,

Crushed corn, sunflower seeds and wheat for dinner

Steak or mince or a hard boiled egg mashed

Zucchini, grated carrot, spinach, silverbeet, corn on the cob, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and Brussel sprouts and grated apple

Garlic infused, then apple cider vinegar in their water at full moon.

Shell grit and crushed cuttlefish are always available in a separate dish in the coop.

Yoghurt or cottage cheese or grated chedder cheese for extra calicum. They love yoghurt on a hot summer's day, it's just like an ice cream to them!

They free range all afternoon and eat all the flowers in our garden too! They like the rosemary flowers, daises, geraniums, and camillias, just to name a few.

I tried a tin of cat tuna and sardines too but they weren't too keen on it.

My chooks are really fussy and don't eat bread or pasta, they like rice though, but be careful with rice and pasta because the bacteria doubles as it multiplies, especially when the weather is warm.

Definately NO GREEN POTATOES or mouldy foods and grapes give them diarrhoea.

Plenty of dark green veggies are really good for them

My girls love fruit, especially grapes!!
They don't tend to eat the vegie scraps unless I put them through the food processor first!!
I generally keep all my fruit and veg scraps in a container in the fridge and then process them, and mix with their pellets and grain mix and shellgrit.
I also keep all my egg shells, bake in a moderate oven for about 15 - 30 mins and then pulverise them. That goes into the mix as well. Great for extra calcium.
I will often put a clove or two of garlic in the mix as well.
If I have a big mix I will freeze and thaw as needed. I am lucky that I have a thermomix to process which is easy to clean, but have been told that normal food processors are a pain to clean!!
My girls don't tend to eat their food out of their feeder. It is more natural for them to scratch around for their food which is why I do the above and scatter on the ground.

Don't feed onion, potato, avocado (although I have heard differing opinions on this - but still avoid just in case they are poisonous.)

Any green leaf is ideal.
Veg peelings including potato can be cooked and mixed into a warm mash.
Raw finely diced onion is an age old natural worming remedy/treatment for poultry.

I have always been told never to feed chooks meat?

My daughter does not eat her bread crusts so I save them and wet them just until soft (not mushy) and my chooks love it.