pumkinsmummy Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Hi all. I read somewhere that you are not meant to feed meat to chooks. My girls LOVE bacon, sausages, beefburgers, ham....anything really (as long as it is from the butchers - they will NOT touch Sainsbury's sausages ). They are happy,healthy and thriving and they obviously do not get this food every day (weekend breakfasts for bacon, and BBQ's in the summer for other bits) so is it wrong to continue? They eat bugs etc which are eat so hoping I am not causing them too many long terms problems. Let me know please. Thank you Mummy to the girls - Penny, Sam and Tom, and the cockeral Elvis (have a mad Fireman Sam boy hence the names) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Chickens do like meat and can eat it with no problems but burgers, sausages an bacon are all too processed for them and high in fat and salt which they just cant cope with so its probably a good idea to look for an alternative A little cat food is fine, fish like sardines and tuna (rinsed) are also good too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henhathnofury Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Agreed. It's the salt that will do them the most harm and could cause kidney problems. They will get their kicks from mealworms, worms and grubs...they really don't need the heavily processed stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Feeding this type of food to hens is against Defra guidelines. Whether they would find out or not is another matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peebles Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 I read somewhere that you shouldn't feed commercial/table birds meat or kitchen s"Ooops, word censored!"s if the chickens are going to be slaughtered for human consumption. Same reason you don't see swill buckets for piggys in schools anymore our lot love a bit of kitty food to perk them up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sage Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Mine do get the odd bit of left over meat & fish. They love chopped fish skin. Wouldn't give them s"Ooops, word censored!"s that contained chicken it's just wrong. The weekend treat of a pouch of cat food between 6 can cause a riot. Sage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pumkinsmummy Posted December 10, 2010 Author Share Posted December 10, 2010 Thank you for the info on the laws regarding chicken feeding - Very interesting - have been having a google. Did you know it also states it is illegal to feed them any waste food from your kitchen, including vegetable s"Ooops, word censored!"s?. I know lots of people who do this.....I can see the meat issue re: processed food and the salt intake but getting a little confused over the rest. According to this my poor girls are destined to scratching for bugs and their mash with no treats but I am sure they will be OK. Thanks for pointing out the errors of my ways - very informative and hopefully will be a better mummy for it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plum Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 I don't feed my chickens s"Ooops, word censored!"s they steal them I've got a bench in the run so I can sit with them and have a drink and snack .............well you can guess the rest Wheat doesn't taste bad but not tried the pellets yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 I dont feed any food from the kitchen - I walk straight from the car to the garden with it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Chick Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 I give mine tuna (in spring water), fish skin, they steal the cats food occasionally They are fine, but I'd never give processed meats. I buy cabbages, grapes etc for my girls which do get stored in my fridge just don't tell Defra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
migsy Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Is it illegal if the hens eat it directly from the kitchen or does it have to actually leave the kitchen to become s"Ooops, word censored!"s? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimnpaula Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Sometimes I prepare freshly cooked potato skins for the girls - I don't want to waste the middles so we eat them Have to admit, most of our kitchen waste are coffee grounds. P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
migsy Posted December 10, 2010 Share Posted December 10, 2010 Sometimes I prepare freshly cooked potato skins for the girls - I don't want to waste the middles so we eat them P I'm sure Defra would approve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
