Luvachicken Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I went into one or those pet shops where you put stuff in a bucket and they weigh it for you when you pay but there were about 5 different sorts of grit to choose from. One was chick grit - which I didn't buy as I don't have chicks one was poultry grit one was pigeon grit another was hen grit and i think another was some huge chunks of seashells.............. I didn't buy them the big stuff and just bought a little bit each of the poultry grit and hen grit but which is the right grit to buy ? Last time I bought them a carton of grit from Pets at home. Also how often are they meant to have grit ? - I have been sprinkling it on their porridge at tea time - can they ever have too much ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizzieLloyd Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I give mine poultry grit in a grit dish clipped to the coop. They take it when they need it so I dont mix it in with their food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Yes I believe they can have too much grit. I also just have a coop cup with grit in the run, so they can help themselves. Sometimes they seem to take quite a bit, other times it takes aaaaaages to go down. I'm not sure about the difference between poultry grit and hen grit, could it be size? The stuff I buy is called 'mixed poultry grit' also weighed and bagged up in the store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvachicken Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 Thanks Lavenders_Blue for the advice, perhaps I better find a better place to put my grit cup as it always seemed to get wet before, and then they can help themselves. I suppose to a chicken maybe size does matter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortle Chook Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I use the poultry grit from Omlet which I put in a separate little bowl. Sometimes I also sprinkle it around the garden for my chooks to pick up as they FR. The bowl is under their house so it can get a little wet if the rain drives under there, but I don't worry too much about that so long as it is not in a sea of water. I can vouch for the fact that pigeon grit is not the same as chicken grit as I have doves as well. They have special pigeon grit which is smaller and different with a sort of red stone in it. The chicken grit has oyster shell in it which the doves should not have. My doves eat far more of their grit than my chickens do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoctorDoLittle Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I've been using "Oyster shell" and also "mixed grit" packed in 1kg amounts in brown paper bags from Pets at Home. I use their coop cups made of stainless steel that fit to the run mesh. I have also drilled 3 x 5mm holes in the bottom so that the rain water can drain out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gongladosh Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 If I remember rightly, the Oyster Shell stuff is the stuff that breaks down to form egg shells, the mixed grit is primarily for their gizzards (but has a bit of oyster shell in it) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CR666 Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 I use a small pot originally designed for feeding budgies etc. It is white plastic with 2 L shaped metal hooks on the back. I have found that the hooks are perfectly sized to pass through the mesh of our WIR. I just use mixed grit in a tub from our local pet shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
