What can a chicken eat and what not?

Proper and customised chicken feed and fresh water every day are essential elements to ensure the health of your chickens. But in addition to chicken feed, grit and clean drinking water, you can also supplement their diet to a certain extent. 

When you want to pamper your chickens, you may be tempted to feed your chickens your kitchen left-overs. But you need to know what you can and cannot feed them.
Suitable left-overs for chickens certainly include: fruit, rice, cooked noodles and potatoes. 

These food left-overs are not allowed: 

• Yoghurt, because it may have laxative effect on chickens.
• Raw or cooked meat. Also foods like spaghetti sauce are not a good idea.
• Any food left-overs that have too much seasoning are not allowed.
• Dog food or cat food. This food is much too heavy for chickens. 
• Garbage. Kitchen left-overs and garbage are not the same. Do not feed your chickens frozen food. You would not eat this yourself.
• Onion peel, leek, banana peel, citrus fruits, etc.
• Potato peelings with green spots or shoots.

If your chickens do not have access to a plot of grass, then it is recommended that you feed your chickens some extra vegetables such as carrots, lettuce, fruit, grass, etc.