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What Do Chickens Eat?
Chickens are omnivores — they’ll eat almost anything they can get their beaks on, from seeds and insects to table scraps and small rodents. That wide-ranging appetite is part of what makes them so satisfying to keep. But knowing what chickens will eat and what they should eat are different things. A well-fed flock starts with a solid understanding of chicken nutritional needs.
Layer Feed — The Foundation of Your Flock’s Diet
For laying hens, a quality 16% layer pellet or crumble should make up 80 to 90% of daily food intake. Layer feed is formulated to provide the right balance of protein, calcium, phosphorus, and vitamins that a hen needs to produce eggs consistently without depleting her own body reserves.
- Pellets: Compressed cylinders — easiest to eat, least wasteful, most common for adult hens
- Crumbles: Crushed pellets — good for smaller breeds and birds transitioning from chick starter
- Mash: Ground meal — higher waste, can get wet and spoil, less popular but sometimes mixed with water as a wet mash treat
Protein content matters at different life stages: chicks need 20% protein starter, growing pullets do well on 18% grower, and laying hens need 16% layer. Feeding the wrong ration at the wrong stage causes real problems — low protein means poor feathering, slow growth, and reduced laying.
Scratch Grains — Treats, Not Meals
Scratch grains — cracked corn, wheat, milo, oats — are the candy of the chicken world. Chickens love them. They’re also low in protein and high in carbohydrates, which means they dilute your flock’s nutrition if fed too freely. Use scratch as a treat: scatter a small handful in the run in the afternoon to encourage foraging behavior. Never replace layer feed with scratch or allow scratch to make up more than 10% of daily intake.
Fresh Foods Chickens Love
Beyond commercial feed, chickens thrive on a variety of fresh foods as supplements:
- Fruits: Watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, apples (no seeds), peaches, bananas — all loved and nutritious in moderation
- Vegetables: Kale, spinach, broccoli, zucchini, pumpkin, carrots, peas — great for yolk color and vitamin content
- Protein treats: Mealworms (dried or live), scrambled or hard-boiled eggs, cooked meat scraps, plain yogurt — excellent during molt and for recovering hens
- Grains: Cooked oatmeal, cooked rice, plain pasta — good for variety, not nutrition
- Kitchen scraps: Most plain vegetable and grain scraps are fine — avoid anything heavily salted, spiced, or processed
Foods to Never Feed Chickens
Some foods are genuinely dangerous for chickens:
- Avocado — persin in the flesh and skin is toxic
- Chocolate and caffeine — both toxic; avoid all cocoa and coffee products
- Raw dried beans — hemagglutinin is toxic; always cook before offering
- Green potato skins and raw potato — solanine causes digestive distress
- Onion and garlic in large amounts — small amounts are fine; large quantities cause hemolytic anemia
- Salty, processed, or fried foods — chickens don’t handle high sodium well
- Moldy food — mycotoxins from mold are dangerous; never feed anything that’s gone off
For a complete safe/unsafe food list, see our detailed guide on what chickens cannot eat. For the right feed at every life stage, see our complete chicken feed guide.
Calcium and Grit — Two Non-Negotiables
Laying hens need supplemental calcium beyond what layer feed provides for consistent strong eggshells. Offer free-choice oyster shell in a separate dish — hens self-regulate their intake and take what they need. Never mix oyster shell into the main feed; non-laying birds and roosters don’t need the extra calcium.
Chickens also need grit — small insoluble particles (granite, coarse sand) that sit in the gizzard and grind food. Hens that forage outdoors on natural ground get plenty of grit naturally. Confined hens in coops or runs without natural ground access should have commercial grit available free-choice.
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Chicken Food Quick Reference
- Base diet (80–90%): 16% layer pellets
- Treats (10%): Scratch, fruits, vegetables, mealworms
- Always available: Fresh water, free-choice oyster shell
- Grit: Free-choice for confined hens; natural for free-range flocks
- Never: Avocado, chocolate, raw dried beans, moldy food, green potato
Water — The Most Important Chicken Food of All
Fresh, clean water is more important than any feed choice you make. A hen that runs out of water for even a few hours will stop laying — and if she goes without water in hot weather for more than a day, the consequences can be fatal. The rule of thumb is simple: if you wouldn’t drink it, your chickens shouldn’t have to either.
Laying hens drink approximately 500ml (about a pint) of water per day in normal conditions — more in hot weather, less in cold. A flock of 6 hens needs at least 3 liters of fresh water available at all times. Clean waterers daily in warm weather; every other day in cool weather is usually adequate.
Feeding Chickens at Different Life Stages
Feed requirements change as chickens grow:
- Hatchlings to 8 weeks: 20–22% protein chick starter (medicated or unmedicated). No layer feed — the calcium level is too high for undeveloped kidneys.
- 8 to 18 weeks: 16–18% grower or developer feed. Transitioning from starter protein to a lower maintenance level as growth slows.
- 18 weeks onwards (laying): 16% layer pellets with free-choice oyster shell. The switch to layer feed should coincide with the first eggs appearing, not before.
- Molting hens: Temporarily increase protein to 18–20% to support feather regrowth. Many keepers supplement with mealworms during molt.
- Roosters in a mixed flock: Feed all-flock feed (no layer) and provide oyster shell free-choice for the hens — roosters don’t need the extra calcium in layer feed.