Feeding Chickens fruit

[speckles]

Hi,

Is it safe to feed chickens fruit? I have heard that if you feed them fruit they will stop laying for up to 2 weeks. Can somebody tell me if this is true..

Also is it ok to use a red light on adult birds for a couple of hours a day?

Any help would be great!!

Thanks
Cheryl

 

[azelgin]

I just now feed my chickens oranges and lemons. I'm not getting many eggs right now anyway. If they quit laying altogether, I'll let you know.

 

[Amethyste]

Mine eat fruit as a treat, they still lay.

No citrus tho.... they arent interested in it /shrug. Apples and melons tho...grapes...pears....they love em!!

 

[silkypie]

My silky goes ape for some grapes. She will protect her pile from the other chickens.

 

[digitS']

As much as they like fruit, I think they can load up on it and not get enough protein to produce their eggs.

I don't have citrus trees and don't know what the admonition is on feeding citrus but the hens can sure eat fallen peaches like there's no tomorrow.

A peach is about 10% sugar and about 1% protein. That's a little short of what a laying hen needs as a major part of her diet.

Steve

 

[rstampa]

Citrus fruit is very acidic and is not recommend for feeding chickens. It lowers the calcium and produce thin shelled eggs or no eggs at all winter or summer it's not good for them. Most other fruits are good for them and they will love them.
It doesn't matter what other people feed their chickens. It's what you feed your chickens that is important.
Here is just one of many articles I found searching Google supporting that argument.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-pick-treats-for-chickens.html

Just some friendly, knowledgeable advise.

 

[NellaBean]

I give mine fruit off and on. Gave them a cantaloupe the other day and they loooooved it. They still pick at the poor little empty rind......

I did cut open a watermelon today that was WAY overripe. ABout half of the inside is mush. Is this still good to give them? I assume it is.....it doesn't smell bad or anything, just mushy.......

 

[honeydoll]

The watermelon should be fine. Mine ate a whole one that was over ripe and never a problem. Mine did get watery pink poo for a day though, but it was just the watermelon.

 

[spartacus_63]

I've heard citrus fruit is bad for chickens but could never find why. Of course I didn't look very hard either. My girls get fruit almost daily during the summer and I haven't noticed any decline in eggs. The shells are definitely not thin either. I have head that citric acid does reduce the protein absorption in humans, but that is mainly with grapefruit which is extremely high in citric acid.

 

[Eggs4Sale]

My hens free-range all day, eating dates by the pound. They all still lay one egg a day.