Chicken toys

You probably don’t think chickens like licorice. You definitely shouldn’t give them any! But they can get the flavor of black licorice without the sugar and additives by eating fennel and fennel seeds. Both are available in my garden right now. Chickens love them.

You can hold the fronds in the air so they jump up to grab a piece to tear off. It’s not only fun for both you and your pet, adorable to watch, it’s good exercise for chickens. Always make sure all your girls get some even if they aren’t as good as others at jumping, especially your dominant hen. Fennel fronds are also good in feeders designed to hold vegetables. As with any greenery, the chickens should be able to get bite size pieces, any way you give them, and not have to eat a whole frond in one piece.

The fennel seeds surround the stem like the petals of a flower. You can hold a stem for them to peck the seeds, and it’s a great way to encourage them to sit on your lap or even to do simple tricks. You can also just toss the stems down and let them get at the seeds themselves.

My fennel patch is a few years old and continuously produces lovely, tasty fennel fronds. They are good in salads and as a garnish on main dishes. Fennel seeds are good for a variety of food, and fresh from the garden they have the most flavor. They are so easy to care for that I don’t even think about them when I do my gardening. They are well worth keeping a spot for because of the variety of food they produce, in bulbs, fronds and seeds. All are delicious for people and chickens. My girls will beg for them.

Fennel contains vitamin C, which is absolutely necessary for laying and egg quality. Chickens can synthesize their own vitamin C, unlike humans, but dietary vitamin C may improve their growth and eggshells. It will also improve their mood, in my experience. It is fun and delicious to eat.

So, as you plan for your spring garden, make sure you leave a little corner or a planter somewhere for a bit of fennel. Be prepared to guard it with some chicken wire, though, because once your girls realize how yummy it is, they will be reluctant to wait for you to offer it to them.

Pet chickens must have their toys, and this month is the time to introduce them to one of the best. It’s pomegranate season and you can usually find them at a reasonable price if you know where to shop. A grocery outlet store has them at 4 for $5 US. Winco usually also has great prices on them in November. Choose fruit with a thick rosy rind. The thinner the rind, the older the fruit, and for chickens underripened fruit is better than overrippened because they don’t miss the higher sugar content.

These are the first fruit I shared with my fall chicks. They were about five or six weeks old when they got their first anils. Chickens do not share the same tastes in food, like humans, and some will take to new foods faster than others. They will develop a taste for fruit at their own pace, and by watching the other chicks. Peeling this fruit by hand is time-consuming, with chicks or hens waiting eagerly for you to unlock the treats. It’s all quality time, helping to develop your relationship with your girls, so you can get a lot of enjoyment from a single fruit, or even part of one.

I like to go outside with a whole pomegranate, pretending to ignore my hens, and sit in a chair to just show it off for awhile, and then peel it slowly. They follow and get excited in anticipation, and explain to me how much they want some. They will stand on my feet and jump onto the arms of the chair and my lap, and I will hand feed them the seeds or hold out small portions for them to peck out the seeds. It is very hard for me to get any of it into my mouth before they swarm me, because they love it so much. It’s good to take a small towel because fruit juice will probably fly in all the fun.

You can also just cut the fruit into portions and let the hens work the anils out by themselves. They will also eat some of the white membranes inside the rind, but not the rind. This gives them a toy and a treat, but doesn’t have all the benefits of playing with your pets.

You can google all the health benefits from eating pomegranates, including antioxidants and digestive health. And, they are chick sized fruit with seeds which makes them a perfect toy and snack in one.