Are you looking for a new way to spoil your backyard chickens? Let's make a flock block! This nutrient packed flock block is a simple and fun way to keep your chickens happy and active during cold and dreary days or during seasons of boredom.
While this flock block might seem like it's just a fun-sized chicken snack, it is also a stimulating activity that challenges the chickens and gives them an activity to focus on! This is particularly helpful during spring and fall when chickens are prone to pecking their flock mates.
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Jump to:
- ingredients for making a flock block
- how to make flock blocks
- herbs for chickens
- why should I feed my chickens grubs?
- can chickens digest whole grains?
- do free-range chickens still need grit and scratch?
- corn-free soy-free chicken treat recipe
- where to purchase corn-free and soy-free chicken layer feed
- more posts about chickens
- popular posts!
- Comments
ingredients for making a flock block
Before you start reading through these ingredients, I want you to know that these ingredients are very forgiving. Just remember, this isn't Great Grandma's prize winning banana loaf, this is a flock block for very appreciative chickens! If you need to substitute or omit any of the ingredients, odds are the recipe will still turn out just fine.
- 6 eggs
- 2 cups chicken feed
- 2 cups grubs or meal worms
- 1 cup chickens scratch
- 1 cup rolled oats
- ¾ cup black strap molasses
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup melted coconut oil
- ¼ cup food grade diatomaceous earth
- optional: 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- optional: 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- optional: 4 cloves crushed garlic
how to make flock blocks
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 8 or 9 inch cake pans. I added parchment paper, but this is optional.
- Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. The consistency will be coarse and messy.
- Pour the ingredients into the prepared pan and press down to pack it as much as possible.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes. The block will be firm, dark, and crispy.
- Leave the flock blocks in the cake pans for ten minutes, then invert the pans onto a cooling rack. Allow it to release naturally. After the flock blocks are fully cooled, they are ready to be served to your lucky chickens! Serve one now, and store the other in a plastic baggie for up to a week.
tip: This is a cross between a brick-style flock block and a more soft and cake-like texture. If you want a block that is more rigid, increase the baking time and decrease the eggs to four. Underbaking will result in a flock block that is very soft and may fall apart easily.
herbs for chickens
Did you know chickens can't taste spicy foods? Crazy, huh? When the weather is very cold, many backyard chicken keepers will add a tablespoon of cayenne pepper to their chicken layer feed to help the chickens become warmer by a gentle activation of their digestive system. Adding cayenne to a flock block will have the same affect.
I also like to add herbs like garlic and lemongrass to chicken feed during the spring and summer months to help naturally repel flies and mosquitoes. Herbs that help support laying hens reproductive systems include rosemary, Several herbs purported to encourage laying and support the reproductive system include rosemary, marigold, nasturtium, cinnamon, red clover and parsley. Consider adding these herbs to your flock block!
why should I feed my chickens grubs?
Maybe it seems gross to open up a big ol' bag of grubs or mealworms, but your chickens will go absolutely wild for them! Whenever I am trying to train my chickens to come when I call for them, I always do this with a mealworm or grub reward. Once they begin to except a delicious treat when I call, "Here chickie chickie chickie" in a sing-song voice, my ladies come running!
In addition to being an amazing treat and training tool, snacks like black soldier fly larvae, grubs and meal worms are high in protein which can be very beneficial to hens who are under stress. This can include extreme weather like hot summers or freezing winters, molting seasons, and the addition of new hens to the flock.
Just remember, treats are just that... treats. They should only be used in moderation and not as a substitute for high quality chicken feed.
can chickens digest whole grains?
A common concern among new chicken owners is whether or not a whole grain can be fed to a chicken, or if it needs to be cracked, shelled or ground first. Chickens have a highly intelligent digestive tract that includes a muscle called a gizzard. A chicken can ingest a whole grain, or even small rocks, and then grind them into a digestible size without prior processing simply with the motion of the gizzard. Don't worry, they won't choke!
do free-range chickens still need grit and scratch?
Even backyard chickens who have access to grass and gravel benefit from chicken scratch and chicken grit for maximum nutrition and absorption of vitamins and minerals. Normal driveway gravel or sand is often too big for a chicken to attempt eating, so a small and appropriately sized grit is very important.
I purchase grit such as crushed limestone, oyster shells and prepackaged chicken grit and add it to areas where my chickens tend to peck and scratch. I also keep a bowl in their run that they can free choice feed from.
corn-free soy-free chicken treat recipe
I have intentionally made this recipe corn-free and soy-free. It can be challenging to find nutrient dense chicken layer feed and chicken scratch that omits corn and soy, but in my personal opinion it is worth it. We choose to limit those ingredients and only eat them in moderation, so this is the diet I want for our backyard hens.
where to purchase corn-free and soy-free chicken layer feed
If your chicken feed contains corn or soy, just use your normal layer feed and don't worry about it! It can be hard to source. If you are looking for specialty chicken feed, chicken scratch, chicken herbs or grubs, I have had great luck with Scratch & Peck Feeds. They are a non-GMO verified and organic certified producer to make sure we are getting the highest quality, healthiest and safest foods for our backyard flock! Use code NINNESCAHHOMESTEAD15 for a 15% discount.
disclosure: I am an affiliate with Scratch and Peck Feeds. When you make a purchase through my link, I receive a small commission at no increased cost to you. I only share links for products that I love and truly use, and when you make a purchase it directly supports my family and all of the projects, pets, and livestock on our growing homestead. From my house to yours, thank you!
more posts about chickens
I love our backyard flock, and I am intentionally adding more and more chicken content to the blog! If you want to see whether or not chickens can be a good tool for natural pest management, check out my post A Guide To Organic Pest Management in the Garden. We also have raised more than 100 Cornish Cross chickens for meat in the past year and I share our experience in the post Meat Chickens: What We Learned. During the months when egg production is high, consider water glassing your eggs to make them shelf stable for up to eight months (or more!) by reading How to Preserve Eggs.
Get my Free Guide for Raising Chicks E-Book and learn everything you need to know to get started on your backyard chicken journey!
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