I know that Omega 3 levels can be boosted in eggs by adding flax seed to the hen's diet, but I'm wondering if anyone here has looked into that much or even tried growing their own flax seed for the supplementation. I would love to find some good sources of information if anyone could point me that way, or even hear some personal experiences. My chickens have a large yard but are not free range as the rest of my gardens suffer too badly when they do. I do, however, try to bring the free range to them by cutting fresh grass, weeds, bugs, kitchen scraps, and anything else I can find, so they seem quite happy and give me lovely dark yolked eggs. I would just like to know that I'm booosting the good fats in their eggs as high as possible.
Kathy
increasing omega 3's in my eggs
I believe someone here found an article in Mother Earth Mag. about that. I know when they read thins they can tell you! Nice to meet you Willowwind! WELCOME ;)
I did have that article--but you can probably just google Mother Earth, chickens and omega 3 and find it faster than I can. If I remember correctly, and I think I do, green vegetables, grass, kelp and flax seeds have all been shown to raise the omega 3 levels in chicken eggs. I think the specialty producers use the latter two more.
I kept my girls in the pen for almost a month so the new layers would figure out where they should lay their eggs. I noticed a color difference(lighter) in the yolks. I'm now letting them eat in the back pasture again and the yolks are that beautiful bright orange color again. Not sure if it's omega 3 but they sure taste good!
I was reading somewhere, that there are different preferences for yolk color--some prefer bright orange, some yellow and some (!) as pale as possible...which are sold as "platinum yolks". I can't imagine it. Grass is suppose to make the yolks more orange..but I have noticed that some of my hens do just lay darker orange yolks than others--even with the same diet.
Thank you all so much for the good direction for reading. I'll follow it up and if I find any great ideas, will be sure to share them. I know,several years ago, we had trouble with our yolks looking so much paler in the winter when the hens weren't gettin all the goood fresh green matter from the yard and garden, so I think it must have something to do with the products of photosynthesis, whether that includes beta carotene perhaps, or something. I do think the overall nutritional value must be higher when there's good color in those yolks. Fortunately DD works at a local Pizza Parlor, and brings home the left over salad bar items and trimmings from setting it up that would ordinarily go into the dumpster. The chickens loved the scraps and the winter yolks darkened right back up. I don't know whether restraunts are legally allowed to give those things out for livestock, but I told DD if she couldn't get them, she could just let me know when they where thrown out and I'd go dumpster diving. Seemed to work somehow!!! Again thank you for your input, and it's nice to meet you all. Kansas so too far from any kelp supplying areas to make that practicle, but I could plow a small area and even grow my own flax seed if I could just find out more about how to do it. It's supposed to be healthy for human consumption as well, so my family could benefit in 2 ways.
Kathy
I think you can buy dry powdered kelp at some health food stores--probably not the cheapest way to get it though. Maybe the Internet?
I have heard of a lot of people who get vegetable waste from supermarkets, restaurants and health food stores for their chickens...maybe easier at smaller establishments. I bring home tomatoes from work--we save the seeds for breeding and just throw out the rest.
My aunt grinds up flax seed everyday and eats it to help w/ her arthritis. She swears by it.
http://www.noamkelp.com/
North American Kelp -- they have a version for animal feed supplementation.
I was reading for what seemed to be hours last night about the importance of grass in chicken's diet.. How it naturally raised the Omega 3.
Then the Flax.. I need to find that link! I think I shut down the computer when I could only hold one eye open.. LOL I can't find the bookmark.. :(
Thanks for the link gallesfarm. It would be nice to have something to use 'til I could get things growing. I also have trouble with arthritis and add flax seed to my bread, pancakes etc., but it's a little expensive to buy that way and feed to the chickens, though I do dearly love them. I'm glad to hear that grass boost it as well, because I try to cut 2-3 galllons a day of just top clipppings to throw over the fence and let them have fun in. They seem to love it.
Kathy
A friend at work did take flax seed oil for some joint problems--it worked well, but then after a few weeks she develped incapacitating stomach pains...it seems that the high level of fat caused her to have a gall bladder attack...probably not common.