Can chickens eat rabbit feed?

[GracefulBantams]

I was just blessed with three bags of rabbit food (150 pounds worth). The problem is, I do not have rabbits anymore. Is this feed significantly different from poultry feed, or can I integrate some into my chickens' diet without causing a problem?

 

[brahmakid11]

i have heard that chickens grow a lot better with goat feed so it would be ok to feed them rabbit feed

 

[pawsplus]

I can't imagine that this would be a good idea. Rabbits are herbivores (complete vegetarians) with a low protein and calcium requirement. Chickens are, well, the opposite. You could use the rabbit pellets as bedding inside the coop, but I sure wouldn't use it as food.

 

[rebel yell]

It has alot of alfalfa in it which is good for them mix it with your regular feed & feed it that way. & yes goat feed works good for me.

 

[colebarnhart]

You might want to just check with the make up of the feed see what % of things it has in it and if it's low in protein you could give your chix some BOSS to get the protein up.

 

[GracefulBantams]

Thanks for the replies! And if I do feed it to them, I would just add some in to their regular feed, so they will definitely not be on rabbit feed only.

 

[kuntrygirl]

I mix a little bit of rabbit food with the regular chicken feed from time to time.

 

[NanaLantana]

Somebody gave me rabbit feed as well, and my girls don't like it at all. Won't touch it. That settles it for me!

 

[Oregon Blues]

It should be mostly alfalfa which is good for chickens.

I'll be surprised if your chickens will eat it. My geese won't and the ducks will only eat alfalfa pellets if I soak them first.

Maybe you can find someone who raises rabbits that would trade you a dressed frozen rabbit for the bags of rabbit feed. The pellets can also be fed to horses, cattle, and goats, so lots of barter possibilities.

 

[Two Creeks Farm]

Protien levels are virtually the same, however the rabbit foods normally lack teh vitamins that poultry food does and is usually lower in fat %