So, the question is, can you feed chickens eggs? I raise chickens for their fresh eggs and delicious meat. Most importantly, I keep them as a source of income from selling their eggs. Chickens are a great form of investment that brings more revenue all year round. In return, they need good care in terms of security, shelter, and food, not to mention their health. From different types of foods I give my birds, eggs make a small percentage. Perhaps you are surprised at the mention of eggs as part of my chickens’ diet. Let me show you how this source of protein can become a delicacy for your flock of birds.
The astounding answer is yes! You can feed your birds’ eggs. All you have to do is to prepare them nicely and pass to them just like other normal feeds. Eggs are a rich source of essential nutrients that your birds need. Including them in their diet helps in keeping them healthy and more productive.
Ironically, we discourage chickens from eating eggs. And this is where we may seem to differ in our opinions. The truth is we prevent chickens from eating their eggs especially after laying them. This is important because it improves egg production while preventing cannibalism.
When it comes to feeding them eggs, the situation is different. Here you need to cook the eggs properly before serving your birds. Cooking eggs for your flock is an interesting exercise because you can add other nutritional items to balance the diet.
Once you fulfill these dietary requirements, you can rest assured that your chickens will enjoy their meal to their fullest. So, how do you prepare eggs for your chickens? Let’s find out more about this subject matter.
Scrambled Eggs for Your Chickens
- Eggs are a good source of different useful nutrients. These include proteins, beta carotene, vitamin A, and vitamin E among others. Feeding chickens eggs helps them during the molting process. The whole process requires proteins as it involves the production and growth of feathers.
- As protein intensive processes, molting and egg production are facilitated by feeding your birds scrambled eggs. You can use eggs as an occasional treat to provide your flock with extra protein for their growth and development. Most significantly, chickens will not turn to eat raw eggs when you feed them well-cooked eggs.
Baked Egg Dish for Your Chickens
- A large baked egg dish will provide your birds with most of the essential nutrients as mentioned earlier. In this regard, you should collect eggs, especially those that are slightly deformed to prepare them for your chickens.
- Instead of throwing away such eggs, you can use them to cut down the cost of commercial chicken feed. Also, the best time to cook this type of meal for your birds is when eggs are in abundance.
- These poultry products have a short shelf-life. On that note, you can put them into good use rather than leaving them to get spoilt. With that in mind, you can reward your hens for their production with a special treat from baked eggs.
- During the preparation, you may add healthy foods like oats, leafy greens, sunflower seeds, fresh herbs, and chopped garlic. Each one of these foods has its own health benefits to your birds. When you combine them with eggs during preparation, you will help your birds acquire the best nutrients ever.
Flax Seeds
- For instance, the flax seeds will add a substantial amount of Omega-3 fatty acids to the baked egg dish. Just like humans, your chickens need more of these acids to stay healthy, lively and productive.
Sunflower Seeds
- Sunflower seeds are a great source of fat as well as vitamins B and protein. Also, these seeds are rich in minerals such as manganese. This type of mineral plays a significant role in the development of strong healthy feathers including their high gloss. Whenever you see your birds’ feathers with an appealing gloss just remember this.
Greens
- When it comes to greens, you should understand their purpose in your chickens’ diet. Greens are known for being healthy and a good source of vitamins including a few useful antioxidants. A perfect example of greens that chickens love the most is the spinach. This type of vegetable will do wonders for your birds’ health when you feed them in small quantities.
- Why not in large amounts just like other types of greens? Well, spinach contains oxalic acid, a substance that inhibits the absorption of calcium in chickens. Much to your surprise, spinach has large quantities of calcium yet it inhibits the absorption of the same mineral.
- As such, it will be needless and counterproductive to give your chickens more of this vegetable. But you can add a certain amount of Apple Cider Vinegar to your chickens’ water in order to counteract the effects of oxalic acid in spinach. This way, your birds will be able to absorb calcium in the same way as other minerals.
- Other types of greens that make a great treat for your chickens include the dark leafy lettuce, Swiss chard, kale, and beet greens. You can add any of them to the eggs during the baking process to make this treat more tasty.
Herbs
- Herbs are also a great addition to the baked egg dish. Most of these plants are useful in one way or the other when chickens feed on them. However, some birds prefer some herbs over others for reasons unknown. Probably it could be their individual taste caused by different aromas from different herbs.
- If you’re making a baked egg dish for your birds, you can try the savory herbs instead of mints to see how your flock will react to it. On the other hand, you may reach out to oregano to be part of your baked egg dish ingredients. Oregano is believed to have natural worming properties not only to humans but to chickens as well.
- In the absence of these aforementioned herbs, you may look for parsley, rosemary, and sorrel to make your chickens’ egg diet complete. Other herbs or botanicals that can create a difference in your chickens’ diet are comfrey, dandelions, marigold blossoms and nasturtiums.
Garlic
- How about garlic? Garlic is a wonderful choice of ingredients that can make your baked egg dish delicious for your birds. This vegetable boasts some natural healing properties as well as promoting good health to its consumers. Your chickens will find it irresistible when you add to their baked egg treats.
Dairy Products
- How about adding a few dairy products to the baked egg dish? Shredded cheese adds the distinctive dairy flavor to this particular chicken meal to make it more tasty. In addition to that, they boost levels of calcium in the recipe. Make sure that you use dairy products in small quantities. Too much of them may cause serious stomach problems to your birds. This can lead to diarrhea and other complications as well.
Preparing Eggs For Your Chicken
- Apart from eggs, what else do you need to make a wonderful baked egg dish for chickens?
Recipe
- 8 fresh eggs (whisked in a large bowl to mix them completely)
- Herbs
- Seeds
- Greens
- Shredded cheese
Preparation
- Start by preheating your oven to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- Grease a 9 by 12 baking dish in readiness for baking
- Pour the beaten egg contents into the greased baking dish
- Add greens to the beaten eggs inside the baking dish. Ensure that your greens are cut into small pieces
- Finally, add relevant ingredients to the entire mixture
- Bake for half an hour or so until all the eggs are well cooked
- When it’s ready, you can refrigerate the baked egg dish before feeding your chickens. Cut them into tiny pieces and sprinkle everything into a bowl containing layer ration. Alternatively, you may just feed them to your birds in any form you want. It won’t create any differences.
- Cooking eggs for your birds is one of the best ways of adding extra nutrition to their diet. You will be surprised to realize that your chickens love cooked eggs more than any treat. For that reason, don’t discard poorly formed eggs or damaged eggs. Use them as a treat for your birds and you will experience an increase in their egg production.
Related Questions
- What will happen when you feed your birds’ eggs throughout? Eggs contain different minerals and nutrients with proteins being dominant. If you feed your birds eggs frequently, they will get more proteins than what they need. Nevertheless, they will not be harmed in any way by eating more eggs.
- Will your chickens form a habit of eating their own eggs once you feed them cooked eggs? Probably yes. Eggs are tasty and delicious and your chickens will like them, leading to a habit they can’t break. Don’t be surprised to find your layers feasting on their own eggs after they have laid. To prevent them from eating their eggs, you can debeak your chickens using the recommended techniques.
In Conclusion
The truth of the matter is that you can feed your flock of chickens eggs. As a special treat, eggs provide your birds with proteins, minerals, and vitamins for their growth. What you need to do is to collect a few eggs, serve them scrambled or bake them for your chickens.
Below is a Pinterest friendly photo…. so you can pin it to your Chicken Board!!
