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What's the best healthy food to feed my backyard hens and roosters?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

What are the main healthiest foods for the hens and rooster

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Angel Alvarado, LVT

Answered By Angel Alvarado, LVT

Licensed Veterinary Technician

Published on February 16th, 2017

Choose a commercial pelleted diet labeled as "all flock" or "flock raiser". This is a complete diet for most chickens.
For the hen, you will need to supplement calcium, especially if she is a layer. You can offer her crushed oyster shells freely.
Do not use a layer diet for both. The calcium levels would be too high for the rooster leading to potential health issues for him.
The website www.backyardchickens.com is an excellent resource for information regarding the husbandry and feeding of domestic chickens.
Vote Icon1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

  • Answered By Bobbi Musgrove, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on March 6th, 2017

    A commercially prepared laying formula (pellet or crumble) that is 16-18% protein is the best nutritional diet for hens that are laying or of laying age, as well as roosters. If a commercially available diet is not available, you can put together a decent ration with these grains and dried vegetables: cracked corn, lentils, split peas and whole or rolled oats. The homemade ration may be better suited for free-range chickens that can also eat live plants and bugs to supplement their diet. I do not recommend a commercial diet that contains any medications (such as a Coccidiostat) for hens that are laying as people should not be ingesting this in the eggs that are laid.

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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