Feeding chickens potatoes?

[fishgirl]

We grew potatoes this year where the chickens free range. They left the plants alone all season, except to try scratching around in the dirt at the base of the plants. Come September and very suddenly they decide potato leaves are tasty. They clean out the entire foliage of three towers of potatoes over a couple of weeks. One of the birds had very loose bowels during this time, but all of them kept eating the foliage until it was gone. Birds appear fine. Curious about the permanence of the neurological disorders mentioned on some solanine lit sites. Next year we'll grow the potatoes outside their range.

Anybody else chickens voluntarily pig-out on nightshade leaves?

 

[wing it]

heres some more info http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potato#Toxicity hope it helps

 

[Amethyste]

My birds have always dearly loved potatoes. I wont give them raw peels tho...I jsut boil them or throw them in the oven for a while before giving them to the girls.

Any cooked potato tho is a highly valued commodity in my flock...they go NUTS over it. It is a treat tho, they dont get potatoes often cos they would spoil their dinner.

Now mashed potatoes are their all time favorite thing,. I do think they would walk over water to get it! I save them some when i make it...before i add the salt and butter etc, so they just get the potatoes with the milk/cream/sour cream whatever in it. Then its mob mentality when they see the bowl, and in less than 3 minutes they are walking around with mashed potato beaks and wiping it everywhere with satisfied looks. Funny critters those birds are.

 

[KDbeads]

digitS' :

Very good

, Skatcatla, they are not mammals but they are livestock and, of course, animals.

livestock: animals kept or raised for use or pleasure; especially : farm animals kept for use and profit (Merriam Webster)

Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine
"nightshade family

"TOXICITY RATING: Moderate . . .

"ANIMALS AFFECTED: All animals, including pets, may be affected.

"NOTE: Other Solanum species contain the same poisonous principle . . . the common white potato (Solanum tuberosum). Sprouts and sunburned (green) or spoiled potato tubers should not be mixed in feed because they also contain solanine. . . ."

Did you know there are actually people who are so sensitive to solanine that they can't eat most of the fruits from the nightshade family? It can cause respiratory asphyxiation and anaphalactic shock to those who are sensitive....
Imagine no tomato sauce on your pizza, no eggplant parmesan, no paprika on anything, no chili powder on anything, no nice green bell pepper on your salad, no potato skins on your potatoes, nothing spicy unless it's horseradish/ginger/wasabi based.......

If you can even remotely imagine..... you'll be living my life.
If I can't eat it I don't give it to the chickens, except for the tomatoes and non green potato skins since they haven't killed hubby yet

 

[Dunappy]

Well I'm not sensitive to the entire "nightshade family" however I am allergic to a portion of it. The pepper portion, no paprika, no green bell peppers, no chili, etc. I eat peppers and my throat swells up and shuts off my breathing.

Q

Did you know there are actually people who are so sensitive to solanine that they can't eat most of the fruits from the nightshade family? It can cause respiratory asphyxiation and anaphalactic shock to those who are sensitive....
Imagine no tomato sauce on your pizza, no eggplant parmesan, no paprika on anything, no chili powder on anything, no nice green bell pepper on your salad, no potato skins on your potatoes, nothing spicy unless it's horseradish/ginger/wasabi based.......

If you can even remotely imagine..... you'll be living my life.
If I can't eat it I don't give it to the chickens, except for the tomatoes and non green potato skins since they haven't killed hubby yet

 

[grandmaof5]

...if they don't consume them and the peels lay around the pen they can cause botulism.

It is my belief that Botulism spores are formed in the absence of oxygen, in anaerobic situations, so anything sitting around is more likely to be another form of 'poisoning', isn't it?

 

[NapaChicknGal]

so leaves on potato plants are ok? I was told "nada" on anything potato.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Here's what I do, throw it to them, if they eat it it's good, if it's not they will leave it, never had a chicken die from eating something bad, most animals know what to eat and what not to, I think it's us humans who have lost the ability to know what's toxic, I love Twinkies, they are toxic, but I still eat them, most toxic things are bitter. I personally don't feed raw potatoes to my chickens, but any cooked old leftovers they will kill me for, they love potato soup.