Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Poultry and Pets => The Hen House => Topic started by: ness on April 07, 2008, 20:08

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: ness on April 07, 2008, 20:08

Hi
This is just a nosy question really and I'm not talking about chucking them steaks everyday.  :lol:
In our house the leftovers (if there is any) goes to the animals.  The dog and cat get meat leftovers.  Rabbits and chooks get veg leftovers.    
I know chooks are omnivores but I feel a bit wrong about giving them meat.  But I gave my girls a tiny bit of cooked liver tonight and they were all over me like a rash.  
I know you can give cat food when they are moulting but is a bit acceptable as a treat at other times?
I guess I do give them mealworms so thats a meat of sorts!  :?

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: woodburner on April 07, 2008, 20:26

Nope. We hardly ever have any waste, and even then it's usually really tough gristle, bones or cooked skin. None of which would I consider suitable, even if it wasn't illegal, to feed to them.  
Nothing goes to waste any more though as we have bokashi bins. :)
I am currently investigating the practicalities of breeding worms for them, for extra protein. ;)

Edit: I've also investigated breeding mealworms, but they are low protein, high fat.  :o

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Wildeone on April 07, 2008, 20:27

Surely its not illegal to feed chooks meat!?!?!?! Chicken maybe but not lamb, mince etc etc

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: henpecked on April 07, 2008, 20:50

I'm following this advice...

"The only request is that they do not sample the delights of other meat... Chickens are very good at getting bad ideas and if we gave then some tasty old meat then they would soon realise that a ready supply of distinctly not overcooked meat was available within their own kingdom."

http://www.rickschicken.co.uk/feeding.htm

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: mtoyne on April 07, 2008, 21:09

Hiya, ive heard that is illegal to feed chickens any meat.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: ness on April 07, 2008, 21:14

Quote from: "mtoyne"

Hiya, ive heard that is illegal to feed chickens any meat.

God - please don't tell anyone I gave mine liver!  :lol:
All these answers are really interesting.
And what about fish? I let mine peck the tuna can clean if the cats not about.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: mtoyne on April 07, 2008, 21:22

lol. No idea adout fish either. Only had chickens since jan this year. Think i saw a post near top of chat pages saying things to know about livestock before buying them, it is a link to the defra website, thats the only reason i know its illegal to give chickens meat.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: mashauk on April 07, 2008, 21:27

I've seen pigeons eating KFC rubbish, but I suppose that's not really the same :lol:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Aunt Sally on April 07, 2008, 21:37

DEFRA regulations say NO MEAT

but defra is really thinking about the poultry industry in general.  You all remember how BSE came about and even worse vCJD  :shock:

So it's transmssion of disease across the species that they are concerned about.  Now if the meat is "fit for human consumption" how can it not be fit for chooks  :?:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: poultrygeist on April 07, 2008, 21:42

Quote from: "Aunt Sally"

DEFRA regulations say NO MEAT

but defra is really thinking about the poultry industry in general.  You all remember how BSE came about and even worse vCJD  :shock:

So it's transmssion of disease across the species that they are concerned about.  Now if the meat is "fit for human consumption" how can it not be fit for chooks  :?:

Would a different immune system mean different mutations get through ?

Just brainstorming.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Aunt Sally on April 07, 2008, 21:45

I very much doubt it !

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: poultrygeist on April 07, 2008, 21:48

It's something I know nowt about (which is surprising I'm sure ! :roll: )  :)

I was thinking in parallel with your BSE reference.

viruses/bacteria that we kill or tolerate might develop in a chicken and either harm it or pass back to us/other animals ?

It sounds feasible if I look at it cross-eyed.  :shock:

I'll quit while I'm making no sense !  :oops:

Rob

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Aunt Sally on April 07, 2008, 21:51

:lol:  :lol:  :lol:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: poultrygeist on April 07, 2008, 21:57

This veterinarian science is harder than it looks. I'm sticking to armchair philosophy. You can never be wrong with that. Even when you are.  :)

Are there any vets on the forum ?

Rob

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: babe on April 07, 2008, 22:13

i sometimes gie mine cattypuss food, but only the fishy types... they love it.

i'll come quietly officer :oops:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: osmunda on April 08, 2008, 08:48

I don't feed meat to my chickens (We've got cats and ferrets that eat any meaty leftovers) but if they find any leftover kills from the cats in the garden they all fight over it and unless I get there first will eat it no matter how old it is! I have just read on another forum though that Muscovy ducks sometimes benefit from a bit of cat food or meat of some sort as they can be prone to anaemia. My Muscovy girls are looking a bit tatty after being pursued by Max the drake for the last few weeks so I think I'm going to offer them a tin of sardines mixed in with their feed. The oil will help with their feathers as well.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Aunt Sally on April 08, 2008, 08:53

Oily foods are not good for chooks though.  It can cause liver problems  :!:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: poultrygeist on April 08, 2008, 08:59

Threads like this are priceless for all the advice that comes from them.

At present we don't feed any scraps to the chooks (nor the dog or cat for that matter) since it's hard to account for fat, nutrients, etc but always good to know what shouldn't be fed.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: osmunda on April 08, 2008, 12:48

Large amounts of oily food isn't good for chooks, ducks or us for that matter! I'm talking about an occasional tin of oily fish and the oil it is in, spread between 10 adult ducks just to give them a bit of extra nutrient for feather growth. I've had this advice from a number of poultry and duck keepers who have been keeping birds for years.

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: poultrygeist on April 08, 2008, 14:08

Quote from: "osmunda"

Large amounts of oily food isn't good for chooks, ducks or us for that matter!

I thought we should be living on oily fish to get as much omega-3 as we can ? Or was that just to sell more oily fish ?  :roll:

Rob

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Aunt Sally on April 08, 2008, 14:35

You're right osmunda.  

A little of something occasionally can be very good.  A lot or frequently can be very bad !

(except for chocolate of cause) :roll:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: osmunda on April 08, 2008, 19:29

You can never have too much chocolate! Especially if it's from Thorntons! Actually I think oily fish is very good for us, unlike other fatty foods! Why is it that everything that tastes good is bad for us!

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: poultrygeist on April 08, 2008, 19:32

blueberries ? They're one of the 'superfoods'

especially with a large cheesecake inserted beneath them.  :D

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: ness on April 08, 2008, 20:09

Ok can I recap?

Pigeons enjoy KFC
Ducks are allowed sardines but only in moderation.
Its compulsory for us to eat to eat chocolate (Thorntons or possibly that Lindt which is my favorite)
And blueberries make you superhuman.

As for chooks and meat its a no go although the jury's still out on fish.


I love this forum!  :lol:  :lol:

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: alibean on April 08, 2008, 20:54

What an interesting thread !

I haven't fed any meat to my chooks yet (as don't eat meat meself).

However, as to fish I haven't given them any cos my Nan says that it makes the eggs taste fishy......

Title: Do you feed your chickens meat?
Post by: Aunt Sally on April 08, 2008, 21:20

I give my chooks fish and the eggs are not fishy at all  :D