In addition to a poultry feed, you can also give your chickens table scraps, fruits, vegetables, grains, and other foods.Īs long as you’ve done a quick check to ensure the foods are safe for them. It’s really easy to feed them, just top up their feeder twice a day and they’ll graze as and when they need. This is going to make up at least 90% of their overall diet and will provide them all the important nutrients they need.Ĭommercial feeds typically come in crumbled or pelleted form. The main part of a chicken's diet comes from a good commercial feed. Related - Can chickens eat whole corn? What's a Well-Balanced Diet for Backyard Chickens?įeeding your chickens a well-balanced diet is important to ensure they stay healthy and lay big, delicious eggs on a regular basis. It gets chewed up into small pieces and passes through their small intestine where the nutrients are absorbed. Take it from me, corn doesn’t stand a chance of surviving their gizzard. This is why chickens also eat grit, the grit is needed to provide a rough and strong substance to grind up the food.

The gizzard is a large muscle that basically contracts and “chews” up food. They don’t have teeth, instead, they have something called a gizzard that munches up their food. See also Why Do Chickens Scratch the Ground? (5 Reasons Explained)Įither way, chickens do not have any issues eating and digesting corn, so you have nothing to worry about.ĭon’t forget, chickens have a very different digestive system from us. I don’t know from a scientific standpoint if chickens are able to completely break down and digest the corn shells, but it appears so to me. I know some of you are wondering if you’re going to spot lots of undigested yellow corn shells in your chicken’s poop, right? It’s a gross topic to talk about, but it’s not a secret. Is Corn Hard to Digest for Chickens?Ĭorn is notorious for making its way through our digestive system and being visible in our poop. It’s surprising how much chickens seem to enjoy having something to chase and play with, so I always hang food at every opportunity.

You just throw them an ear - that’s what the cob is called - and leave them to peck away at it. In whatever form you give them corn, they’re going to eat it.Ī lot of owners choose to give their chickens corn on the cob as it’s so easy. They can eat it raw, cooked, from the can, cracked corn, fresh, even frozen. Yep, you don’t have to cook corn before giving it to your chickens. In Summary - Can Chickens Eat Corn on the Cob?.Some Other Foods That Are Good for Chickens.What's a Well-Balanced Diet for Backyard Chickens?.Corn is a good “fuel” food, and it encourages their natural scratching behavior. It’s fun to watch them strip a cob and eat it by pecking away. Absolutely, if you give your flock an ear of corn on the cob, they are going to be more than happy.

Corn for Chickens by Bernie Morris