Can Chickens Eat Avocados?

There are so many different things you can put avocados on. Toast, burgers, sandwiches, and salad are just some of the few. Avocados are used to make guacamole, a staple in any Mexican restaurant. They’re also some of the healthiest things humans can eat. But what about other animals you might have around your house or farm? Chickens aren’t able to eat the pits and skins of avocados, but they can eat the flesh of an avocado. The flesh is the light green area inside an avocado that humans tend to enjoy and use most often in cooking. Why is the flesh of an avocado is healthy for chickens, but every other part can be deadly?

Why Can’t Chickens Eat the Pits and Skins of an Avocado?

The pits and skins of avocados have something called persin, something that’s toxic to chickens. Persin is a natural fungicide found inside avocados. If a chicken, or any bird, eats something with persin, they will have trouble breathing, issues poaching, and might even have a sudden death. While it’s very toxic to chickens, humans don’t get any negative effects from it. In fact, there have been some studies done that show persin can help those with breast cancer. This research has shown persin causes the infected cells to die very quickly.

Tips When Feeding A Chicken Avocado

If you’re wanting to feed a chicken avocado, you want to ensure you’re cutting enough around the flesh of the fruit. Because the skin and flesh touch each other, and the skin is where persin is, giving as much room away from the skin will keep the chicken safe. Feeding chickens avocados rarely is a great way to help add to their natural and healthy diet. This is especially true if you wish to eat the chicken down the line. Chickens should be fed grains and proteins like wheat, insects, worms, and cooked eggs. Making sure chickens have tons of water readily available is also crucial for their diet.

What Other Food Can Chickens Not Have?

Avocado pits and skins aren’t the only things chickens can’t have. When feeding them proteins, make sure you don’t give them raw meat. The raw meat can contain salmonella, something harmful to chickens. Make sure to not give them bread, either. This can cause deformities in chickens. Another thing to avoid giving chickens is raw eggs. While they are completely okay nutritionally, eating raw eggs might make chickens want to eat their own eggs.

You also should avoid giving chickens any other fruit with seeds, much like avocados. Salty and greasy foods can cause health problems in chickens, much like humans. Potatoes and dried beans have toxins in them when they aren’t cooked. While it might seem like this is a long list of foods you can’t give chickens, they still love the grains commonly found around farms.

What Other Animals Can’t Have Avocado Skins and Pits?

Chickens aren’t the only animal that can’t have avocado skins and pits. Many other animals like cows, sheep, and other pet birds aren’t able to have this part of the food. Two animals that can have avocados are dogs and cats. You need to make sure the seed of the avocado isn’t swallowed by a cat or dog. This can cause stomach issues and other digestive problems, especially if the dog or cat is smaller. There’s a slight chance something could happen to a dog or a cat, but it’s very rare they’re effected by persin. You don’t want to give your dogs or cats too many avocados, as it might cause their pancreas to become inflamed. If you had a horse and wanted to give it an avocado, you would be fine.

Chickens are some of the most important animals on the planet. They are one of the most important food sources for humans. They’re some of the healthiest things we can eat. If you’re looking to add something to the diet of a chicken, avoid giving it avocados as much as you’re able to. You can occasionally give them avocados if you want, but be safe. The flesh part of an avocado is fine, but nothing else. Avocados are a great super food for humans. Chickens love eating grains and protein, so don’t feel like you’re cheating them if you want to feed them primarily those.