Chooks, acorns and egg whites.

[peeejaay]

Hi All, Can anyone advise me as to whether acorns are poisonous to chickens please? I currently feed my two girls on slow-cooked potatoes whizzed in a blender and mixed with bran and layers mash. However I was wondering whether I could cook and whizz acorns and mix up as above. I know they are poisonous to horses but not to pigs but can't find any info on effects on chooks. Also can anyone advise as to why my girls egg whites are a bit watery and won't peel cleanly when hard boiled. When soft boiled the eggs always taste as if they've been poached in a pan of water. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance. PJ

[frias]

Fresh eggs don't peel well. They need to be over a week old to peel. Also your girls need to be on layers mash or pellets with potatoes or other things given as a treat late on in the day. Layers mash has everything they need whereas other things don't. I personally would not risk acorns but someone else might know different. How old are your girls? Older hens often lay watery whites. What are the eggs like scrambled or fried?

[Suechooks]

I'd second what Frias has said. Giving extra bran will unbalance the feed which is formulated to give the hens a balanced diet. Potatoes don't have much nutrition for hens either. This may be why the whites are watery - just a thought?
Don't think I'd chance acorns either but that's because I don't know whether they're poisonous for chooks or not.

[RichmondHens]

I also agree with Frias. Feed pellets/mash first and foremost and follow up with treats late afternoon, but not too many. I do not know if acorns are poisonous to chooks but we have loads of them here and our chooks do not touch them. I am of the mind that if they do not choose them naturally then it's probably not a good idea to try and feed them.

[di]

All I've heard about acorns is that if chooks eat too many it will make the egg yolks green!...guessing they're not actually poisonous as the article I read it from didn't advise against them eating them,but for that very reason I would avoid letting ours have any!

[Hilary B]

I wonder how chooks were kept healthy and laying a reasonable number of eggs before Layers' Pellets were invented?
Acorns, being nut-type seeds, are probably highish in protein, so may help balance the carbs in potatoes (beans would be good too). I wouldn't use too many, but more inclined to break them up a bit (put in bag and batter with rolling pin, or similar approach) BEFORE adding to the spuds while these cook.
I wouldn't abandon the layers' pellets entirely, but if you are happy to accept a lower egg production, and willing to do a bit of research into protein content, you can probablly use 50% 'home made' feed. If you try this method it would be a good idea to add poultry spice to ensure plenty of the minerals that get included in the commercial feeds.