Chickens require various nutrients to sustain healthy growth. With no teeth to grind their food up, chickens rely on grit to break it down. Baby chicks can eat green grass but also thrive when fed commercial chick starter feed or household kitchen scraps.
Once chicks have reached adulthood and become pullets, they should be fed a grower feed with 16-18% protein and additional calcium for strong eggshells. Fresh water should always be available.
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Starter Feed
At this stage, chicks require a complete chicken feed containing protein and nutrients in order to thrive. Starting mash or crumbles designed specifically for baby chicks should be given as starter feedings; medicated starter feed containing amprolium will protect chicks against the fatal intestinal condition known as coccodisis.
Chicks should also be given various foods and treats, but these should be distributed using a feeder designed to avoid food spillage and contamination by droppings. Open dishes should be avoided since chicks will track droppings through them and potentially develop infections.
At eight weeks, chicks should be switched over to Home Fresh Grow and Show Grower Feed with lower protein content as this will support them as they reach laying age.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes can make a nutritious addition to your flock’s diet as long as they’re fully ripe. Their nutrients offer your flock essential vitamins and minerals needed for good health.
As a treat for their birds, give them some tomatoes to peck at as an afternoon treat. Just be sure that all leaves, stalks, and flowers that contain solanine (a compound harmful to chickens) have been removed as these may contain toxic levels of this chemical compound.
As with humans, chickens need to be wary of overfeeding them with tomatoes as this could cause overhydration. Keep an eye out for watery droppings which might indicate too many tomatoes were consumed by your flock.
Oats
Chickens can consume rolled oats as part of a healthy, well-rounded diet; however, overfeeding them may lead to their weight increasing excessively and cause them to gain too much.
Chicks should receive most of their nutrients from commercially prepared chick starter feed; however, you may wish to occasionally supplement their meal with rolled oats for a protein boost and increased nutritional content.
Chickens need the ability to digest small stones, gravel or grit for good digestive health. Without access to this material they could suffer blockages in their gizzard and become sick or even die as a result.
Eggs
Your chickens need various nutrients for good health. Protein helps the chicks develop, feather and egg production are greatly increased as a result, calcium, magnesium potassium vitamins A E as well as iron are all provided through protein sources.
Your chicks need protein in their diet in the form of pellet or crumble feed; pellets tend to reduce waste more efficiently while being more easily digested than crumbles.
Your chicks can also enjoy eating boiled eggs as treats; just be sure to remove their shells to prevent pecking! Boiled egg treats contain high levels of protein and other vital nutrients.
Yogurt
If a chick is not receiving enough nutrition (as evidenced by weak comb, poor vent and pale feathers) or is sick due to shipping or hatching stress, warm up some plain yogurt with an eyedropper and use it gently drip it onto its beak using an eyedropper. Be wary of forcing feed the chick as this can result in aspiration which will kill it instantly.
Once chicks reach four weeks old, they should be switched over to Home Fresh Grow and Show feed with reduced protein, but which still provides them with all of the nutrition required for healthy development until their first egg lays at 20 weeks or later. Grit should also be included at this point in time.
Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese is a low-fat, high-protein fresh dairy product made of curdled milk that typically features mild and creamy textures. Cottage cheese comes in nonfat, reduced-fat, lactose-free and low-sodium varieties for your convenience.
Casein protein provides an excellent source of selenium, an essential nutrient for thyroid health. Furthermore, casein’s slow digestion makes it just as useful in building muscle as its counterpart whey protein.
Chickens may eat table scraps, but these should only make up a small part of their diet. Cottage cheese offers higher levels of protein than sliced cheese while being less likely to cause digestive upset than other dairy products.
