Cheap Cat Food

I went out to purchase some cat food to add a little protein and variety to the diet of the chickens. I was ingredient shopping as usual, and found that the cheapest food has lots of corn, a great ingredient for my yellow legged birds, and others as well! Cheaper is sometimes better!

Schipperkesue wrote:I went out to purchase some cat food to add a
little protein and variety to the diet of the chickens. I was
ingredient shopping as usual, and found that the cheapest food has lots
of corn, a great ingredient for my yellow legged birds, and others as
well! Cheaper is sometimes better!

Hi How do you feed the cat food whjole or do you crunch it up
Geri

That is interesting to know Sue!

We fed our birds we were going to take to the show some cat food while they were being coop trained, their favorite was those Temptations (our cat didnt like that flavor!) well all except the Dominique rooster, he hated captivity and I think he lost weight during the training time, the Buckeye rooster gained, he just loved those treats!

Plus, you can eat it yourself when you get to be a senior.

Well, I haven't tried it myself yet, Fowler, nor given It to the chickens, Geri, but the chickens eat whole corn with no problem, so I don't think they will have trouble with the cat food.

If you are worried about size, then feed kitten food!

Some of my chickens watch when I feed the cats (a separate building) and sneak in to clean it all up! Not all of them.... just the "clever" ones! LOL! I've had to cage them for a while to keep them out but they have great memories.

Schipperkesue wrote:I went out to purchase some cat food to add a little protein and variety to the diet of the chickens. I was ingredient shopping as usual, and found that the cheapest food has lots of corn, a great ingredient for my yellow legged birds, and others as well! Cheaper is sometimes better!

Hey Sue, tell me more about feeding corn and yellow skinned chickens. Does it cause a chicken's skin to yellow or does it just enhance the colouring of an already yellow skinned chicken?

Am I correct that every breed has a specific skin colour - yellow, white, black, etc, before enhancing from feed?

my birds LOVE dog food kibble. I feed a food that has a rather large kibble and my guys gobble it down, even the bantams. I give it to them to train them, as treats, and in the winter to add fat and protein to the diet on cold days.

I don't always buy the cheep ( ) stuff as I want the highest protein. I just lable shop and look for high protien with not to high fat. I actually found one that is called high protein, usually I buy kitten food as it is often the highest. I just feed mine the dry stuff whole. It is often the moulting hens that gobble it up the most!

ChicoryFarm wrote:

Schipperkesue wrote:I went out to purchase some cat food to add a little protein and variety to the diet of the chickens. I was ingredient shopping as usual, and found that the cheapest food has lots of corn, a great ingredient for my yellow legged birds, and others as well! Cheaper is sometimes better!

Hey Sue, tell me more about feeding corn and yellow skinned chickens. Does it cause a chicken's skin to yellow or does it just enhance the colouring of an already yellow skinned chicken?

Am I correct that every breed has a specific skin colour - yellow, white, black, etc, before enhancing from feed?

CF, I don't know about skin, but corn will enhance the pigment in yellow legs. For more info read here:

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I suppose carotenoids would yellow the skin as well.

We have always fed our peafowl cat food. I personally think that's what make their colours 'pop' and so vibrant.

Do you feed a non-chicken meal variety?

Mine has chicken meal. They dont have a problem eating each other in other circumstances.

True. I wonder if there can be disease passed through the food though. You know, like CJD in cows?

Susan wrote:True. I wonder if there can be disease passed through the food though. You know, like CJD in cows?

Certainly a thought. I am not overly worried.