Humans love potatoes, the potato is a versatile vegetable that can be used to make chips, crisps, and salads. Not only are potatoes delicious, but they deliver a variety of vitamins and minerals into the body.

If you love red potatoes you may be inclined to let your chickens have some. Chickens love eating human foods and will eat almost anything you give them, including raw red potatoes. but is this food good for them? Do chickens eat raw red potatoes? This article explores this question 

Chickens do eat raw red potatoes, the skin of these potatoes are packed with a variety of nutrients that will boost and maintain your bird’s health including fiber, iron, B vitamins, and potassium. This vegetable can be fed raw or cooked and the birds will enjoy it all the same

 

Do chickens eat raw red potatoes? 

Humans cannot eat raw potatoes because they are difficult to digest, but chickens eat uncooked vegetables all the time, potatoes included. A chicken’s diet usually consists of fruits, vegetables, and grains. Red potatoes fall into the vegetable category. 

Benefits of chickens eating raw red potatoes

Red potatoes are healthier for chickens than other types. This type of potato has thin skin that contains a variety of nutrients including fiber, iron, B vitamins, and potassium. 

Fiber:

Fibre is a non-digestible nutrient. The fact that this nutrient is non-digestible makes it helpful in maintaining good digestion in the chicken’s body. It also stimulates movement in the bird’s gastrointestinal tract 

B vitamins:

B vitamins are beneficial to chickens as they keep the bird’s feathers looking healthy and beautiful, these vitamins also play a role in maintaining a healthy weight on the bird.

In addition, chickens that have adequate amounts of B vitamins in their bodies do not develop nervous disorders, have high energy levels, and maintain strong and healthy immune systems 

Iron:

Iron is essential for good chicken health. This trace mineral plays a role in transporting oxygen and electrons throughout the chicken’s body to cells and tissues. Chickens that suffer from low levels of iron develop anemia. 

Other vitamins:

Other vitamins that red potatoes offer include potassium, vitamin C, calcium, vitamin D, and protein. All of these play a role in improving and maintaining your chicken’s health and well-being 

In addition, chickens enjoy the process of eating potatoes, because raw red potatoes are tough, chickens keep busy pecking at the vegetable and don’t get bored 

Can chickens eat the whole potato?

Chickens can eat the whole vegetable but they need to avoid eating the vines, flowers, and any potatoes that have turned green, the flowers, vines, and potatoes that have turned green are toxic.

This green color develops when the vegetable is not stored properly, becomes exposed to light and produces solanine. Solanine has a bitter taste and when eaten can be an irritant to the bird’s digestive system.

If your chickens eat enough green potatoes, the bird can develop neurological effects 

How to serve raw red potatoes to chickens 

Chickens will eat raw red potatoes any way you serve them. If you leave the whole potato out then the chicken will peck at it. If you cut it up into very small pieces the chicken will eat it as well.

You can also string pieces of potato around the coop and allow the bird to play with its food as it eats.

What to avoid when serving raw red potatoes to chickens

Avoid giving chickens too many raw red potatoes. Although this vegetable is a good source of nutrients, it should only play a small part in a chicken’s diet. The bulk of your chicken’s diet should be grains. Fruits and vegetables should be given in smaller amounts 

In addition, it is also important to avoid giving your chickens red potatoes that have salt on them. Chickens that consume too much salt can produce eggshells that have defects, the birds can also produce shell-less eggs.

Too much salt can also cause the bird to develop sticky manure and kidney disease

Conclusion

In conclusion, yes chickens can eat raw red potatoes, the skin of this vegetable delivers a variety of nutrients to the bird’s body. This food can be given as is, chopped up, or strung all around the chicken’s coop.

Avoid giving your bird green potatoes or salted raw red potatoes

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:  Do chickens eat rabbit pellets?, Do chickens eat tortilla chips?, Do chickens eat tortillas?, Do chickens eat radish greens?