Chickens are amazing creatures that can eat a wide variety of foods. Understanding what chickens eat is key to keeping them healthy and productive In this complete guide, we will cover everything you need to know about a chicken’s diet.
The Natural Diet of Chickens
In their natural environment, chickens are omnivores and will eat almost anything they can find. Their diet consists of seeds, insects, worms, small reptiles, amphibians, and even small mammals.
Chickens spend a good part of their day foraging and scratching for food Their strong legs and sharp talons are adapted for scratching up the soil to uncover hidden treasures Their pointed beaks efficiently pick up food from the ground.
Some of the main components of a chicken’s natural diet include:
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Insects: Crickets, grasshoppers, beetles, caterpillars, grubs, maggots, ants, spiders, and flies.
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Worms: Earthworms, slugs, snails.
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Seeds and Grains: Seeds from grasses, flowers, weeds, bushes, and trees. Wheat, barley, oats, corn.
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Fruits and Vegetables: Berries, melons, tomatoes, leafy greens, roots, tubers, fungi.
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Small Prey: Mice, lizards, frogs, snakes.
As omnivores, chickens require a balanced diet of plants and animal matter to thrive. Their diverse natural diet provides protein for growth, carbohydrates for energy, and vitamins and minerals for overall health.
Commercial Chicken Feed
In a backyard or farm setting, most of a chicken’s diet will consist of a commercially prepared chicken feed. These feeds are formulated by animal nutritionists to provide complete and balanced nutrition.
The main types of commercial chicken feed are:
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Starter feed: High-protein feed for baby chicks, provides nutrients for rapid growth.
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Grower feed: Fed to pullets from 8-20 weeks old to support continued growth.
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Layer feed: Provides high calcium and nutrients needed for egg production in laying hens.
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Broiler feed: Formulated for fast growth of meat chickens. High protein and calories.
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Maintenance feed: For non-laying hens and roosters, lower protein but balanced nutrition.
When feeding commercial feed, it’s important to provide the right feed for each type and age of chicken to ensure they get proper nutrition. Free access to fresh water is also essential.
Healthy Supplements and Treats
While commercial feed makes up the bulk of their diet, chickens enjoy and benefit from a variety of supplements and treats.
Some healthy treats and additions to a chicken’s diet include:
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Fresh fruits and veggies – favorites are tomatoes, spinach, kale, apples, melons, squash, peas, and carrots. Provides vitamins and minerals.
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Cooked rice, pasta, oats – good source of carbohydrates.
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Mealworms, crickets – excellent source of protein.
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Seeds and nuts – high in protein and healthy fats.
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Calcium-rich foods like yogurt, cheese, tofu and eggshells. Important for egg production.
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Fresh greens, grass, herbs – excellent for free-range chickens to graze on.
Always introduce new treats slowly and monitor the chickens to ensure it agrees with them. Variety and moderation are key when supplementing their diet.
Foods to Avoid
While chickens will eat almost anything, there are some foods that should be avoided to keep chickens safe and healthy:
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Moldy or rotten foods – can contain toxins and make chickens sick.
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Raw potato and green potato skins – contain solanine, a toxin.
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Raw or undercooked beans – contain lectin, a toxin.
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Dried beans must be cooked before feeding.
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Avocados – contain persin, toxic to chickens.
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Onions and garlic – can cause anemia in large amounts.
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Chocolate or coffee – contains theobromine and caffeine, toxic to chickens.
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Salty or sugary foods – can cause digestive upset.
It’s also important not to overfeed treats, as chickens can become overweight and suffer health problems if their diet is not balanced. Moderation is key for supplemental foods.
Monitoring Your Flock’s Diet
Observing your chickens will help you determine if their nutritional needs are being met through their diet.
Signs of a proper diet include:
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Good energy levels and activity
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Shiny feathers
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Strong egg production
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Healthy weight gain and growth
If chickens show signs of deficiency like low energy, poor feathering, reduced egg laying, or slow growth, reviewing their diet is recommended. Consulting a veterinarian can also be beneficial.
With a balanced, varied diet, your backyard flock will stay happy and healthy for years to come. Get to know your chickens and what they like to eat, and they’ll reward you with endless entertainment, delicious eggs, and years of joy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can chickens eat bread?
Yes, chickens can eat bread in moderation as an occasional treat. However, too much can lead to obesity, so fruits, veggies and chicken feed are healthier options.
What kitchen scraps can chickens eat?
Chickens love most fruit and veggie scraps like apple cores, broccoli stalks, and carrot peelings. Cooked rice, pasta and oats are also enjoyed. Avoid anything salty or spicy.
Can chickens eat their own eggs?
It’s best not to allow chickens to eat their own eggs raw, as this can lead to egg eating habits. However, cooked or baked eggs make a nutritious treat, as do dried, crushed eggshells for calcium.
How often should chickens be fed?
Chickens should have constant access to their feed so they can eat small amounts throughout the day. Automatic feeders are ideal to ensure they always have food available.
What do baby chicks eat?
Newly hatched chicks need starter feed which is finely ground and high in protein for their rapid growth. They can also eat chick grit to help digestion. Avoid treats until chicks are older.
The feed for broilers is divided into 4 stages:
This is what chicks eat in the first week. Their digestive system has not fully developed yet. That’s why they still eat very small pellets, almost as small as breadcrumbs.
This is the feed that chicks get after about a week. The pellets are now slightly larger. Their digestive system has already developed a little better. So, part of their feed is made up of whole wheat. This means their gizzard (an organ to help digestion) is put to work. The chicks need to do a lot of growing, so they are allowed to eat a lot.
The pellets in this stage are even bigger, as much as three millimetres long. The chicks have grown since stage 3, so they can eat the larger pellets easily. At this stage, the chicks get a little more whole wheat than before. Their digestive system has formed enough to allow them to digest whole wheat.
This is the feed that broilers eat to grow big. The chicks are now even bigger than before, so they can eat bigger pellets. They also get a bigger proportion of whole wheat in their feed – as much as 35%.
What do chickens eat?
Chickens eat anything and everything, which means they eat both plants/vegetables and meat. So, chickens are called omnivores (a carnivore only eats meat and a herbivore only vegetables or plants).
Chickens naturally eat seeds and cereals. On poultry farms, they get cereals such as oats, wheat, barley and maize. They also get by-products (leftovers) from the food industry, such as soya and rape meal, and sunflower and wheat residues. This way, chickens recycle what we humans don’t eat. Finally, they also receive a special premix from De Heus. This contains all the vitamins and minerals that the chick needs.
Broilers and laying hens do not eat the same food at all. This is because hens need to lay eggs and broilers need to grow meat on their bones.