Can I give my chickens apple cider vinegar?
Yes, your chickens water can be supplemented with apple cider vinegar. The benefits to having this in their diet are plenty from de-wormer to mite deterrent it really is a chicken keepers most useful tool.
It is important to note that like anything, you could give your chickens too much apple cider vinegar leading to negative effects on the chickens health. There is a dosage you should stick to to keep your flock healthy.
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How much ACV to give chickens?
You should give your chickens 20ml of apple cider vinegar to 1L of water. This dosage should be added to your chickens water around 4 times per month. From my experience, they seem to even prefer the taste of the water.
Avoid putting the solution into steel bowls, it is acidic and will corrode over time. Use plastic drinkers or water bowls for your apple cider vinegar and water mix.
Is Apple Cider Vinegar good for chickens?
Apple cider vinegar’s many positive uses for humans are widely known, however did you know that apple cider vinegar is also great for your chickens? By supplementing your chickens water with some apple cider vinegar every so often, you can help boost their immune system and flush our toxins at the same time!
What does apple cider vinegar do for chickens?
Prevention is better than a cure, and apple cider vinegar is a great way to prevent common health issues. It’s multitude of health benefits is also recognized by industry professionals. Apple cider vinegar can help chickens with:
- Defends the gut against worms
- Deterers mites
- Reduces the risk of respiratory problems
- Mild antibiotic & antiseptic
- Reduces stress
- Treats diarrhoea
- Promotes water consumption
- Calcium absorption for better eggs
What is apple cider vinegar?
Apple cider vinegar is an acidic liquid made by crushing apples and mixing the juice with sugar and yeast. This mix is left to ferment and turn into alcohol. After this a second fermentation process takes place, turning the alcohol into vinegar.
The bacteria responsible for fermenting the alcohol into vinegar is acetobacter. It creates acetic acid which gives vinegar its taste, it also contains small amounts of phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and calcium, which are all needed so that our bodies maintain a normal function.
Apples and their juice contain high amounts of vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. During fermentation their presence is increased, making apple cider vinegar a great choice to improve chickens health by an added boost to their immune system among many other benefits.
Apple cider vinegar & garlic for chickens
This is a super combination for the prevention of diseases in chickens. Garlic is another great natural antibiotic. It also boost the immune system, deters red mites, kills bad bacteria & protects against some common viruses like Salmonellosis.
When you add garlic & apple cider vinegar you decrease the chances of the chickens developing many different ailments. Considering the cost of both these ingredients is so low, there really is no reason you cant add them to your chickens diet.
For garlic, you can either feed them whole cloves or crush it and put it in the water. You could give the chickens both garlic & apple cider vinegar at the same time or separately. If you don’t want to taint the taste of the eggs, it would be a good idea to alternate between the 2 ingredients through out the month.
Apple cider vinegar for sick chickens
Giving apple cider vinegar to sick chickens can help clear up infections & gut upsets. It can also help with respiratory infections by killing bacteria in the beak. The boost of concentrated enzymes and vitamins help the birds immune system fight back & get better.
Did you know?
Thanks to science and vaccinations salmonella was all but eradicated in the UK. This was a great achievement saving many people from very severe food poisoning.
