First I want to say hello, I have only 3 lovely chickens to start off with as I learn the ropes.

Secondly, my neighbours son is absolutely obsessed with the chickens. It’s really nice, but he is also feeding them huge amounts of wild bird seed and I’m a little worried. There are mounds of the stuff being poured over the fence!

I have spoken to his parents nicely and asked them to stop him doing so, which they understand.

In case this doesn’t get resolved quickly, is there any danger that this can cause harm to my chickens?

  • handygaber@lemm.ee
    3·
    4 months ago

    I’d say there is no immediate danger. But the chickens might not eat their regular food, which contain vital vitamins and nutrients. In the long term it might weaken the chickens health and cause all sorts of illnesses.

    • Luvs2Spuj@lemmy.worldOP
      2·
      4 months ago

      Thanks, I think this is what I was expecting but I wasn’t sure if there was a risk of causing some kind of digestive problem. I read about packed up / hard gizzards and all kinds of diseases before getting my hens and I am a bit of a worrier.

      • BigDanishGuy@sh.itjust.works
        2·
        4 months ago

        I wouldn’t be too worried. I mean depending on the size of your birds, they should be eating about 100g a day. If the kid is supplying that amount of feed, then having asked the parents he’ll hopefully have trouble sourcing the feed going forward.

        How do you feed your birds? Suppose you keep the intended feed in the coup, then waiting an hour longer before letting the birds out should see them eat more of the egg laying feed before they’re allowed to eat the seeds. If that’s not an option, and malnutrition is a serious concern, then add some vitamins to the feed or seed mounds.

        Come to think of it, why not hand the kid a small bag of the feed and let him lop a handful over the fence daily? I mean there’s no need to discourage the kids interest in live stock, and educating him on best practices, could maybe see you having a babysitter next door, when you need to go out of town someday.

        • Luvs2Spuj@lemmy.worldOP
          1·
          4 months ago

          I can keep them in a little longer to get them to eat their feed, but I do enjoy letting them out while I have a coffee and watching them scratching about. It’s a good idea for me to keep in mind if I need it.

          I have the same thoughts as your last paragraph, I do want to get him involved and try to educate him but I need to get the parents on the same page. I showed him their daily portion to give him an idea of how much they need and said to throw this cup of feed over tomorrow instead of the seeds. He threw it over about 30 minutes later.

          If there is no immediate risk then I can afford a little more patience, I want to be as accommodating as possible.