My chickens don't eat fresh vegetables

[ChaosMom]

...Pigs were the main recyclers of kitchen waste back in the day, actually, not chickens. Chickens were turned loose to forage.

See, perfect example! Things I thought I knew but didn't.

 

[K0k0shka]

See, perfect example! Things I thought I knew but didn't.

You can always learn something new! My grandparents were subsistence farmers and I spent a lot of time with them growing up. We had a bucket in the cabinet under the kitchen sink, and all kitchen scraps went in it. We'd rinse dishes lightly before washing, and that first water with the food bits in it went in the bucket, too. Then we'd add some milled grain to it, chopped gourds and whatever else was around seasonally, and take it out to the pigs. It looked like vomit, but smelled soooo good and the pigs slurped it with such delight, that they made me want to dig in right alongside them! Between all the animals we had, no food or garden/yard waste was ever thrown out. I miss those days.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Pigs were the main recyclers of kitchen waste back in the day, actually, not chickens. Chickens were turned loose to forage.

Very true. The kitchen wastes and garden wases were for the pigs from when we got them in early spring until they were butchered in the fall. In the winter when we did not have pigs the chickens got some kitchen wastes but the overall volume was really small.

But people don't have pigs these days so chickens are a good way to use kitchen wastes.

 

[Sic]

My chickens also don't like fresh vegetables, but they love Styrofoam so I give them something that resembles what they love. I finely chop all fruit and vegetable scraps in a food processor and then freeze dry, they come out like little bits of colored and flavored Styrofoam and it goes into their winter feed when they're hungry and there is nothing to forage. Makes me feel better not throwing stuff away, but definitely not economical considering the power usage of my freeze dryer.

 

[Al Gerhart]

I've tried to give a lot of different fresh vegetables to my chickens (lettuce, cabbage, peppers, apples, tomatoes...). They peck it out of curiosity, but then they ignore it completely.

I'm not worried at all, because they have good quality chicken feed, which they love, and they spend their day foraging my garden eating grass and bugs, but I'm very curious why they are not interested at all in anything else.

Well, they are defying your parental authority then. You must put your foot down before your spouse sees this and begins pushing back too.

Try using a stern voice.

Next, stories about starving children in China were once popular to guilt kids into eating.

Force them to remain at the table until they take a bite and swallow it.

Last, corporal punishment. Don't leave marks, use a rubbermaid soft rubber cake frosting spatula.

Be ready for CPS, Chicken Protective Services, to show up if you lose your temper and leave marks on their feathered bottoms.


It was an April 1st post, I figured it deserved an April Fools answer.

 

[cesargtapia]

I work with beginning gardeners a lot and it's amazing what they've "learned" online. Things become common knowledge (read: common beliefs) in no time at all. I know that I thought we'd be sending our vegetable waste to the chicken run too, before we got pullets and they noped right on out.

That's 100% my case, both gardening and chickens. First time I do both, and I'm having so much fun. I know it's a little bit risky doing both things at the same time without having a clue of what I'm doing, but everything is going good so far, knock on wood

Can you share some of that "common knowledge" that is not true? My main source of information is the internet, so it might be very useful to get some down-to-earth tips.

 

[ChaosMom]

That's 100% my case, both gardening and chickens. First time I do both, and I'm having so much fun. I know it's a little bit risky doing both things at the same time without having a clue of what I'm doing, but everything is going good so far, knock on wood

Can you share some of that "common knowledge" that is not true? My main source of information is the internet, so it might be very useful to get some down-to-earth tips.

Ah, I see you're in Spain, so my usual recommendations won't necessarily work. In the US (and several other countries), local counties or provinces have "Extension Services" with agricultural specialists who are knowledgeable about livestock, small farming, food preservation, big agriculture, soil and water, gardening etc. (areas vary.) There might be something similar where you live. Specifically for consumer gardening, we have Extension Master Gardeners, who are available for questions and problem-solving. There might be something similar for you, possibly from a local agricultural college or institute.

Otherwise, when I'm trying to search online for something that is more likely to be science-based, I type in a search term and also "site:.edu", "site:.gov", or "site.org". .edu brings up published research at the university level, as does .org, although that can also just be a non-profit. .gov brings up governmental agency publications.

As for "common knowledge" that isn't correct, I referred to my own error above, about kitchen scraps going to chickens in past days, but in fact, they first went to pigs, if there were any. Another that I used to believe is that hydrogen peroxide is great for flushing out contaminated wounds, but in fact it kills healthy tissue as well as bacterial walls, so it delays healing.

"Common knowledge" in what I wrote tends to include the latest diet trend, health speculation, "this one weird trick", and so forth.

 

[dearmeghann]

My girls like tiny pieces. If we throw the veggies on the ground or their chicknic table, most tend to ignore it. However, if I hold it for them to pick off, they're more interested. A few favorites are frozen blueberries (thawed out), romaine, and kale. They love the curly parts of the kale.

Something new they just tried was a cooked egg! I accidently cracked our Olive Egger's egg and felt bad about the waste. I scrambled it up with the shell and they loved it!

I want to get them some plain yogurt to try!

 

[K0k0shka]

Mine like greenery (trimmings from my forsythias, or bunches of kale, lettuce, collards etc.) if I tie it up in bunches and tie it to the fence of their run. That way they can pluck from it like they would from a shrub, as opposed to throwing loose leaves/branches on the ground. Chickens are too stupid to pin a loose lettuce leaf down with one foot so they can peck bites off of it - instead, they grab the leaf and pull, lifting it off the ground and flinging it across the run, then getting mad that it ran away

 

[amarsano]

I'm not expert, but my first group of 6, 6 years ago, wouldn't touch apples. They would eat grass, bugs, frogs, snakes, insects, and mice when they were roaming. As i acquired new birds, there are some that love apples, my one bird left from the first group still won't touch them. The one thing they all really seem to enjoy is kale. We give them 10 bunches once a week. I have 53 birds, now, and they will eat it throughout the day. I have one bird that adores kiwi. I think it's always hit or miss. They also love ALL meat. We have a no fowl to the fowl rule, but beef, bison, and pork are adored. They really like picking all the little bits off of rib bones. And while it is not common, if I set out a slice or two (literally, I know its junk food) of stale bread they fight over it.
I guess it's all what they're in the mood for or maybe lacking in their diet. They have access to regular feed all day and get grubblies with some scratch as a treat every couple of days.