Jules. Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Our girls have gone off their layers pellets, I have just put the uneaten ones on the compost heap (is that ok to do?) It's certainly been 4 or 5 days since I topped the feeder up, & it was almost full when I put fresh in this evening Our girls free-range all day 5 days out of 7 when I am not at work, & when I let them out of the run (I do not shut the Eglu door) on those days at about 7am they stampede out & snatch at the grass like they have never seen it before. They only get a few treats in the afternoon, sometimes grapes, bread & tonight they got bio yoghurt with porridge oats mixed in. Should I give up the treats for a bit, but I am worried that if I do then they won't be eating anything but grass & bits they pick up in there. Any advice gratefully received, apart from the not eating they are blissfully happy The pellets are in date, as we bought them when we bought the girls Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Frugal Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Try cutting out the treats or at least cutting them down for a few days, Jules. They won't let themselves starve so if they're hungry, they'll eat the layers pellets. They may well be holding out for better things later. Mine are faddy with their layers meal at the moment and so that's all they're getting and suddenly, it's delicious and they're eating it! Worse than children, aren't they! Good luck with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xChicken04x Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Oh, can i just add that the bio yougurt wasnt a good idea as chickens are lactose intolerent (dont laugh) so if you have been feeding them dairy products that might be why they are off there food. hope this helped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jules. Posted June 9, 2007 Author Share Posted June 9, 2007 Worse than children, aren't they! Good luck with them. Yes, they are- but just as lovable ( I dare not say more lovable, alihodg will read this!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Frugal Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Oh, can i just add that the bio yougurt wasnt a good idea as chickens are lactose intolerent (dont laugh) so if you have been feeding them dairy products that might be why they are off there food. hope this helped I remember being told by one of the Omlet guys early on that natural bio yogurt was good for their digestive systems, especially if they had diarrhoea and it's also beneficial for sour crop as it helps balance the natural bacteria levels in the crop . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 If you give your hens nothing but layers pellets, they will eat them. If you give them something that tastes nicer, they won't. It's as simple as that. If you only have two young hens, I would only quarter-fill the Grub. I wouldn't put the unused layers pellets on the compost heap, or you will get rats. Even worse, the pellets contain an antidote to rat poison. I don't like the idea of giving a bird dairy products: it seems very unnatural. But I can't find anything to say you shouldn't, so I am probably worrying unnecessarily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jules. Posted June 9, 2007 Author Share Posted June 9, 2007 Thanks for the replies, my girls are now on a menu of layers pellets only Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 I've read about chickens not being able to digest lactose too, which makes bioyoghurt not so good on the nutrition front for them. However, and it's a big one, I still believe it's good to give if they've been on antibiotics, had sour crop or have a bit of a dodgy tum. This is only instinctive on my part though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Mine seem to go through phases of eating their pellets. They free range from late morning onwards, but at the moment the 4 younger ones seem to go back to the run regularly to stuff their little faces with pellets. They are going through a grub a day at the moment! But the 2 bigger girls (older) seem to take ages to get through it, and they are not let out as often at present. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinkkat Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 You can get dairy-free soya live bio yoghurt - maybe that would be better for them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lailapet Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 Someone told me that chickens are practically omnivorous and somehow naturally seem to only eat what will not harm them... It might be old wives' tales though... I KNOW they eat slugs and insects etc, but it still seems very unnatural to me feeding them any kind of meat, so I don't. I've also heard of people (in the old days) feeding their chickens the carcasses of their dead and cooked "friends" to pick clean. Now THAT is macabre in the extreme... Or am I just squeamish? My ex husand is lactose intolerant and occasionally he eats a natural bio yoghurt to boost his digestion - but then, he's a homoeopath and believes in "Like cures like" so in that way it makes sense... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 To encourage mine to eat pellets I make them pellet bread or pellett porridge, Just wet a handful of pellets and mix with wet bread or oats. Making sure thay are a bit soggy as the pellets/porridge really suck up the water, they love this this and they are eating pellets. Its a bit like mixing veg into your kids food and not telling them. I tend to do this every other day for breakfast, they are getting a treat and almost knock me over to get at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jules. Posted June 11, 2007 Author Share Posted June 11, 2007 what a good idea, I will give that a go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
