The day I realized I was drowning my hens with too much protein

I've been keeping chickens for about 3 years now, and I always thought giving them extra mealworms and scrambled eggs was like a superfood treat. Then last spring I noticed two of my girls were drinking way more water than normal and their poop was almost liquid. I figured it was just the heat, but then one of them stopped laying for a whole month. I asked a guy at the feed store in Austin about it, and he said I was probably overloading them on protein, which messes with their kidneys and calcium absorption. Turns out layer feed already has enough protein for most birds, and the extra stuff should only be like a 5 percent snack. Now I use mealworms as a rare training tool, not a daily bowl. Has anyone else accidentally messed up their flock's diet by being too generous?

2 comments

2 Comments

fisher.reese8d ago

I cut back to just a handful of dried mealworms per week for my six birds and switched to a 16% layer pellet, and the watery droppings cleared up in about ten days.

flores.emma8d ago

Did you notice any change in their egg color after switching pellets?