Is Hay or Straw Bails OK??????

Advice needed?

Is it ok for my Hens to have a bail of hay or straw in the run, i mixed some layers pellets in there and they seem to love scratching around for the grub? is the hay/straw a good idea as ive been told a few different opinions?

Cheers
Rich_Chicken

Straw, not hay.    I made a straw bale winter shelter for my girls so they could have a window on the world without getting cold and wet. Also they climbed on it to get a better view sometimes    They used to lay eggs under there sometimes as well 

Apparently hay is bad news for hens as they get their feet tangled up in it and they may try and eat it which is not healthy and could get stuck in their crops

straw is best because hay will not last long and absorbs water etc

Advice needed?

Is it ok for my Hens to have a bail of hay or straw in the run, i mixed some layers pellets in there and they seem to love scratching around for the grub? is the hay/straw a good idea as ive been told a few different opinions?

Cheers
Rich_Chicken

The guy who helps me has over 300 chickens which he breeds and shows. He told me never use Hay near the chickens, and dont use straw from a farm or similar as the straw can harbor red mite. He said the straw is better bought which has been processed and cleaned.

Phew looking after chickens can be hard work lol.

When my uncle was alive, he never bothered with his chickens, fed them on scraps and corn and they gave loads of lovely eggs and had good lives, now it seems so many things are bad for them lol.

Quote from: funkychook on November 25, 2011, 14:17

Quote from: RICH_Chicken on November 22, 2011, 21:12

Advice needed?

Is it ok for my Hens to have a bail of hay or straw in the run, i mixed some layers pellets in there and they seem to love scratching around for the grub? is the hay/straw a good idea as ive been told a few different opinions?

Cheers
Rich_Chicken

When my uncle was alive, he never bothered with his chickens, fed them on scraps and corn and they gave loads of lovely eggs and had good lives, now it seems so many things are bad for them lol.

Yeah, I often wonder how on earth chickens managed to survive back in the day....with all the do's and don't's these days, its nothing less than a miracle that they still exist lol 

LOL you are so right, I thought it would be easy but i worry about them all the time lol. They are funny though and very entertaining and each one has its own personality. I never realised that chickens growled until my hubby tried to pick up my red hampshire lol, and I decided to rename her DIVA not Matilda lol.