Patridge bantam chicken poorly foot?

[Kit]

Hi

 

I am struggling with what to put in my eglu run and converter to keep the girls occupied.

 

I have read that you can hang corn in their eglu runs. Can I put in a fresh uncooked corn on the cob from my garden in there, or is it a cooked one, a dried one?

 

Also can I just use garden string to hang it?

 

If anybody have any other great ideas I would love to hear it...currently I have a branch in there for them to perch and a dust bath that I need to fill regularly for them.

 

thanks

 

Kit

[moomin]

Hi Kit

 

You can hang a fresh uncooked corn on the cob in there. Within half an hour it will be stripped bare (depending on how many chooks you have!). They also like tinned sweetcorn with no extra sugar or salt added.

 

I don't hang mine up I just chuck it on the floor for them to fight over!

[piptiddlepip]

I give mine a raw one and they go bananas over it. I hang it up on the side of the run (otherwise it's like Chicken Swingball). Within half an hour, as stated, it's just a husk.

 

Mine turn their beaks up at tinned sweetcorn.

[dancing cloud]

I hang a whole uncooked cob as a rare treat. As I have six "ladies", I have to hang two or it would be all-out war, and it's still like watching a shoal of piranhas attack!

[GreenGirl]

I give a couple of raw cobs into my lot, which is when they switch into velociprator-mode, like Dancing Clouds girls!

They also love tinned, but wont touch the dried ones I hung up.

[sheik]

If you have problems with greedy chickens fighting over the cob, cut it up into several pieces and things will be more peaceful. We don't hang ours up, just put them on the floor.

 

They're not fussy either, and will happily eat cobs that are very pale yellow.

 

We used to cook ours until we realised they like them raw just as much.

 

Supermarkets often sell them near their sell by for 20 pence or so a pack - keep your eye out!

 

Another thing to hang in the run or thread through the mesh to keep them occupied are dried millet sprays. Some shops sell these at £1 for a large bag of them.

 

/\dam

[Egluntyne]

Mine love them and strip them bare in seconds.

 

They also love the tinned sort too.

 

In fact they love anything yellow. I no longer wear yellow marigolds when cleaning the Eglus as I was being pecked to death.

[keyhole kate]

I have to break up whole cobs of corn

for my 7 otherwise there would be all out war

My OH said to me one day "there not chickens

there velociprators" Mine are very very greedy

they can stip a cob in a minute I swear

mine would eat my cats who now disappear

like a shot if one breaches the eglu netting and comes

in the kitchen My cats will however chase my DD's

Staffie X 3 times the size of them

 

On the Yellow point my YD didnt give a thought

and went out in sandals with sweetcorn yellow

toenails trust me she wont do that again

[sarahs]

Hi all

 

I'm still discovering my girls' special treats.. but cooked corn on the cob seems to disappear way faster than uncooked.

 

I've also tried tinned peas (no sugar or water added) and they looked at me as though I was totally insane!!

 

Sarah

[jomaxsmith]

Do you feed them pellets or mash? Mine are on mash and that combined with their chickeny digging and sunbathing in the run keeps them plenty busy, without me providing extra distractions.

 

I do give them corn cobs and cabbage a couple of times a week as supplemental foods though.

 

Jo

[Janty]

Peckablocks keep mine amused for ages. Plus I have added hanging feeders and apple hangers in their runs. They love them. The hanging feeders keep mine amused.

[Helen&Lee]

I also put small cabbages in the run, pecka blocks are good too.

[Kit]

well thanks for all the advice!

 

gave my 3 hens one cob to share...they pecked at it showing no interest, but as soon as muggins here picked the corn off for them they were the happiest hens I have ever seen. full of chatter and excitement and the good news was that they were desperate enough to eat out of my hands.

 

cheers everybody...keep the good advice coming!

 

Kit

[moomin]

Peckablocks keep mine amused for ages. Plus I have added hanging feeders and apple hangers in their runs. They love them. The hanging feeders keep mine amused.

 

Janty, what's a hanging feeder? Do you mean the plastic things that you put pellets in? That you can hang up? I'm looking for ideas for my run too, they haven't got that much in it and don't seem to complain at the moment, but I want to put more stuff in for the winter days when they can't freerange cos I'm at work. They'll be in bed when I get home

[Starkey]

Cauliflower works for ours. Trim the stalk/leaves bit and chuck it to them whole. Cabbage is good. Pak Choi(they got on the veg patch) evaporates. Spinach trimmings. In fact, just about anything really.

Some of our ex bats have severely clipped beaks so I hold the corncob for them to attack and the starch goes everywhere...

Fiona

[eggypeggy]

Mash is a good idea, it keeps them busy, as it takes longer to feed. Sounds like you have the rest covered.

[Hen Watch]

In my run I have:

 

- a perch (eg. tree branch or broom handle)

- a dustbath under cover

- a parrot mirror (which they ignore), you could hand old CD's up for them.

- a metal food ball from a pet shop (same as in Omlet Shop). They love any food in this rather than on the floor. I generally put brocolli or cauliflour stalks in it.

http://www.omlet.co.uk/shop/shop.php?cat=Chicken%20Extras&sub=General&product_id=572

- any food suitable to hang up on string. I use garden string tied to the bars with carrot tops, again brocolli stalks, corn on cob etc. Mine prefer swinging food to peck at and they are older now and never peck the string left behind as they just seem to know it's not food.

[TAJ]

We grow lots of sweetcorn - Prehaps I am being mean, but I cut off the corn for us to eat and give the hens the cob, which they then spend hours eating off all the remains of corn.

 

Tracy

[chooklady]

My girls seem to like almost anything, but they especially liove sweetcorn, fresh, defrosted frozen stuff, tinned, cooked so much so they if I'm carrying something yellow/orange like a glass of orange I get mugged!! Cheeky little devils.

[eggalp]

today i bought some of those baby corn on the cobs which were reduced in tesco - i thought my hens would love them as they like the 'big' stuff, but they didnt want to know, not interested at all!