I like to make my own homemade chicken treats. This helps me use up kitchen scraps and keeps them out of the trash. Plus, it is a fun diversion for your chickens to keep them happy and healthy.
Nutritionally, early fall and midwinter are both important times of year to ensure the treats you give to your hens have the right balance. At these times, your hens are going to be either going into or coming out of molt. It is good for them to get a protein boost to help them make those beautiful feathers. And when the days are shorter, it’s a nice way to keep your hens occupied and happy since there is less outdoor forage time with the reduced daylight.
Winter is also a great time to make your own homemade chicken treats because you can use up your leftover garden gourds, winter squash and pumpkins (as well as other great kitchen scraps).
For this treat, I like to take a bunch of healthy proteins, mix in some tasty treats and round it all out with healthy vegetables and grains. I blend all of it together in the food processor. Then for a festive touch spoon it back into the shell of the pumpkin or gourd. You will have the happiest chickens in the neighborhood!
Chicken-safe foods to use in this recipe
Start with squash, pumpkins and vegetables
So what are some good things to put into your protein chicken treats? You can use the insides of pumpkins and other garden gourds. When you scoop out the seeds and pulp to make a pumpkin pie or a jack-o-lantern, put them aside for your chicken treats. You can use the meat too, if you have it. Same with acorn squash, spaghetti squash, butternut, zapallo del tronco, blue Hubbard, delicata, or tromboncino. In fact, chickens aren’t too picky. You can use any other winter squash you’ve grown in your garden where you would normally scoop out the seeds.
I like to aim for about 50% pumpkin / squash in the overall recipe. It adds a great consistency once puréed , not to mention a fabulous color. But more than about 50% could mean some declining palatability for the chickens.
Another 20-30% of the mix should be vegetable scraps. You can start with some broccoli or cauliflower stalks and leaves. If you are using the broccoli stalks in a Broccoli slaw or a stir fry, you can even use the stalk shavings in your chicken treats. Chickens love broccoli and cauliflower leaves, too.
Carrot shavings and carrot tops are some other kitchen scraps chickens really like, and which do very well in this recipe. The carrots are said to help their eyes as they age, just like for humans.
For many recipes, like this crowd pleaser Greek chicken gyro recipe, I scoop out cucumber seeds. Cucumber seeds are a favorite in our coop, and they work well in this recipe, too. They add a nice bit of moisture, too, so the mix won’t get too dry.
Add a Heathy Dose of Protein
Now throw something in to boost protein levels. This will help them grow back their feathers, and will give them a jump start to get ready to lay eggs again.
I usually use sunflower seeds, safflower seeds or raw peanuts, which I usually have on hand for the wild bird feeders. And the hens love them – especially the sunflower seeds! Even millet has a good amount of protein, so feel free to throw that into your treats, too.
Another option for adding protein that the chickens will love is to use a big handful of meal worms. This is one of the absolute favorite treats around this coop. Sunflower seeds and mealworms are a delicious one-two punch that work wonders for molting chickens.
A big scoop of natural peanut butter or almond butter also works if you don’t have other nuts or seeds on hand.
Finish with a Dose of Grains
Oatmeal and cracked corn are chicken favorites and will increase the palatability of the blend for your girls. You can also toss in a slice of fresh bread. We always toss in the end piece of a nine-grain loaf to the girls. Just be aware there are a lot of dry ingredients, so you need to be judicious with the amounts and proportions in the blender. Try to keep the grains to about ten percent of the overall mixture.
What Foods to Avoid in your Homemade Chicken Treats
I generally stay away from anything in the nightshade family. This includes eggplant, potatoes, peppers, and tomatoes. Not only do the chickens dislike the taste, but also they contain solanine, which in high quantities is bad for a chicken’s digestive system. A cooked potato is fine for the chickens, and generally tomatoes in small quantities are also ok, but I don’t use them because I don’t want the hens to acquire a taste for tomatoes when out foraging in the garden.
And while broccoli and cauliflowers leaves are fine for them, the tomato and potato plant leaves have a much higher toxic level than the potato tuber and the tomato fruit. Head on over to my post Foods That You Should Not Feed to Chickens for more info.
Making the Chicken Treats
Of course you could just toss the scraps and nuts out to the hens and let them have at them. Much of the time, this is what I do, too. However, for special occasions, holidays, and wintertime when the days are short and rainy, I strive to beat boredom in the coop. It’s a great diversion to give them a new and different presentation.
Put everything in the blender and purée. For that extra special presentation, serve the blended mixture inside a half pumpkin or winter squash rind. I know your chickens will love it!
Love love!!!