Excessive amounts of salt can wreak havoc on the human body, having too much salt in your system can cause headaches, kidney disease, stomach cancer, and even stroke, however, some salt is needed in our diets to maintain good health.
So, is this the same for chickens? Can chickens drink salt water? This article looks into it.
Can chickens drink salt water?
Chickens do need some salt in their diets, it is recommended that these birds eat a diet that contains around 0.12 to 0.2 percent salt to maintain good health.
That being said, giving chickens more salt than this is not recommended, in fact, too high levels of salt in your chicken’s diet can be unhealthy and even dangerous for the bird
Chickens can not tolerate high levels of salt in their diets, these birds can quickly suffer from salt intoxication if given too much salt.
It is said that as little as a teaspoon of salt is enough to kill a chicken, so, serving the birds salt water, which has a high salt content, will be quite dangerous to these birds
The best water to feed your bird is plain, simple, natural water.
What about Epsom salts?
Chickens can eat Epsom salts, Epsom salts can be used internally and externally when it comes to chickens.
It can be administered orally to treat constipation and diarrhea.
Epsom salts can be used to make a bath for your birds to soak in. An Epsom salt bath can treat a variety of ailments including vent gleet, egg binding, bumblefoot, and dry skin, the salt is a mild exfoliator.
Epsom salt is different from normal table salt, table salt is sodium chloride while Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate.
Magnesium sulfate is helpful as it works as a laxative, reduces stress in your birds, and, improves your bird’s circulatory health.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other chicken related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Broody Hen Pecking Chicks, Broody Hen Rejecting Chicks, Broody Hen Attacking Chicks, Broody Hen With A Pale Comb, Broody Hen Eating Eggs
