In addition to offering your chickens their regular food, you can also give them some treats that are healthy and nutritious.
Kitchen wastes like fruit peels, cores and stale bread make delicious treats for your birds. However, avoid offering uncooked potato peels, avocados and chocolate as these items are not nutritious or safe to feed your chickens.
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Fruits and Vegetables
If you have access to a backyard or garden, offering your chickens various fruits and vegetables is an excellent idea. Though these may be overlooked as sources of food, these items are packed with essential vitamins and minerals that will keep your flock healthy.
Vegetables like broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, radishes and squash make nutritious snacks or treats. Not only are they high in fiber but low in calories too – making them an ideal option for a light snack or treat.
Fruits like apples, bananas and berries can also be offered to your birds. Just be mindful that many fruit pits contain toxic seeds which should be removed and peeled prior to offering them the ripe fruits.
You might be amazed at the variety of foods that are safe and nutritious for your chickens besides chicken feed! Many are items likely already in your yard, plus they’re relatively inexpensive too! They provide a great opportunity to provide your flock with essential vitamins and minerals without breaking the bank.
Seeds
Chickens are foragers, meaning they search for insects, weeds and grasses in their natural environment. This diet is cheap and provides them with most of their nutrition needs.
If you want to save money on feed for your flock, why not grow some of their favorite foods in your backyard? Vegetables such as carrots, onions, and cabbage are great candidates for growing in a small space.
Pumpkins and winter squash are beneficial to chickens, as they’re packed with essential vitamins and nutrients that will keep your hens healthy throughout the winter months.
Seeds are an affordable option to feed your chickens during the winter months. Sunflower seeds in particular are beneficial as they’re packed full of essential nutrients and easy to procure.
It is essential to not feed your chickens seeds that are toxic or contain mold. Fruit and vegetable seeds like plum, cherry apple, pear and quince can all be highly hazardous if not removed before feeding them to your flock.
Bread
Chickens can eat a variety of food items and treats. However, there are some foods they cannot consume or that are toxic to them.
Bread is a popular food that can be fed to your chickens in place of chicken feed. Not only does this save money on feeding costs, but it provides your birds with an easy alternative to standard chicken food.
Bread is a versatile food made with flour and water with yeast as its primary leavening agent. It’s an everyday staple in homes across America, available in an array of flavors to suit any palate. Not only that, but bread also provides nutrition at an affordable price point for your birds – providing them with nutritious treats they’ll love!
Meat
One of the great advantages to raising chickens is their omnivorous nature – they’ll eat pretty much anything they can get their beaks into, from table scraps and leafy greens to vegetables and fruit scraps. They make great pets too!
Meat can be an excellent source of protein for your chickens if you can locate it cheaply. This is a great way to save money and reduce the amount of commercial feed used on your birds.
Another option is to make your own chicken feed. Combining animal meats and scratch grains together is an inexpensive way to provide your poultry with a complete diet without having to purchase commercial feed.
You can also raise mealworms or earthworms for your chickens to eat. They provide a fun, healthy alternative to commercial chicken feed that you can grow yourself at an economical cost. Plus, these provide valuable sources of protein for the poultry while enriching the soil in your garden.
