Supplementing Your Chicken’s Diet

Learn about supplementing your chicken’s diet with Nutrena and Blain’s Farm & Fleet.

Do chickens need supplements in their diet? If you’re new to raising chickens, you might not know about all the different ways to supplement their diet. According to Nutrena, a good layer feed provides almost everything chickens need for a balanced diet, but there are three other things to have on hand – oyster shell, grit, and scratch grains. Each of them are great supplements for your chicken’s diet. Learn more with Nutrena and Blain’s Farm & Fleet.

Oyster Shell

Laying eggs depletes calcium levels for your birds. Layer hens require three times more calcium than non-layer birds.  Even though birds should be fed a balanced layer feed diet, some chickens need the extra calcium. Not enough calcium causes thin eggshells, as well as things like weak bones. Oyster shell is a small investment that’s important for your layer birds. Provide oyster shell as free choice in a separate container from their feed.

Grit

Grit is essentially pebbles that end up in your birds’ gizzards and help them digest their food. Chickens don’t have teeth, so they need all the help they can get when it comes to digesting their food. Grit is cheap, and it goes a long way. Without grit, chickens can develop digestive disorders, so that small investment is definitely worth it. You can start feeding grit to birds at six weeks of age.

Scratch Grains

Finally, scratch grains are another way to supplement your chicken’s diet. Scratch grains are a grain mix that can be given as a treat, if desired. It should only be 10% or less of their total diet. While chickens enjoy scratch grains, it doesn’t have enough balanced nutrients like a good layer feed.

In order to have the best egg production, layer hens need the best nutrition. That’s why Blain’s Farm & Fleet carries Nutrena chicken feed and supplements. For more information on raising and feeding your birds, visit our Chickens & Poultry blog.

This content was originally posted by Tiffany T. on scoopfromthecoop.nutrenaworld.com.