An essential dietary supplement to aid digestion and a natural source of calcium for strong bones and the production of quality egg shells.
If a chicken doesn’t get enough calcium, she will start to leach the calcium from her bones in order to create egg shells. That can lead to weak, deformed or broken bones, like osteoporosis in humans. Not providing your chickens with enough calcium can also lead to soft-shelled eggs.
Calcium is also what produces the contractions in the hen’s oviduct which pushes the eggs out. Chickens who don’t get enough calcium and lay soft shells are in great danger of becoming egg bound, which is a potentially fatal condition caused by an egg getting stuck in the oviduct. If the egg breaks inside the hen, the shell (if there is one) can puncture her intestine leading to peritonitis, an infection that can be fatal if not treated.
Ever heard the phrase "As rare as hen's teeth"? That's because chickens don't have teeth. When they take food into their beak it's moistened by saliva but not chewed, and pushed down the throat by the tongue. So chickens need grit to be their teeth. The grit goes straight down the throat into the 'gizzard' which is the second, muscular part of the stomach. It's a tough, rubber-like bag which is strong and flexible enough to churn the food without distending or splitting.
In the gizzard, the combination of strong muscle movement and the insoluble chips of grit grinds the food into a digestible mush. Enzymes which were added in the first part of the stomach break it down even further so it can be properly absorbed into the body when it passes from the gizzard into the intestines.
Without grit, food won't break down sufficiently. What can happen then is that it putrefies in the stomach - and your chicken becomes very ill.
Always provide grit in a separate container. The chickens will take what they need.
As an environmentally conscious business, we are proud to be using biodegradable packaging.
Calcium is also what produces the contractions in the hen’s oviduct which pushes the eggs out. Chickens who don’t get enough calcium and lay soft shells are in great danger of becoming egg bound, which is a potentially fatal condition caused by an egg getting stuck in the oviduct. If the egg breaks inside the hen, the shell (if there is one) can puncture her intestine leading to peritonitis, an infection that can be fatal if not treated.
Ever heard the phrase "As rare as hen's teeth"? That's because chickens don't have teeth. When they take food into their beak it's moistened by saliva but not chewed, and pushed down the throat by the tongue. So chickens need grit to be their teeth. The grit goes straight down the throat into the 'gizzard' which is the second, muscular part of the stomach. It's a tough, rubber-like bag which is strong and flexible enough to churn the food without distending or splitting.
In the gizzard, the combination of strong muscle movement and the insoluble chips of grit grinds the food into a digestible mush. Enzymes which were added in the first part of the stomach break it down even further so it can be properly absorbed into the body when it passes from the gizzard into the intestines.
Without grit, food won't break down sufficiently. What can happen then is that it putrefies in the stomach - and your chicken becomes very ill.
Always provide grit in a separate container. The chickens will take what they need.
As an environmentally conscious business, we are proud to be using biodegradable packaging.