Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Grass fed cows are healthier because of their omega-3 rich diet. Chickens and turkeys aren't supposed to eat grass though. Why does the Paleo diet include them? Can they be raised on omega-3 rich grain?

flag	asked Sep 23 2011 at 6:43 balor123 5,955●2●14●58

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Bug fed. Wild fowl follow the migrations of herbivores and eat the bugs that are attracted to the droppings. (They are birds. Birds eat worms and other bugs, primarily) – Dave S. Sep 23 2011 at 13:40

My chickens eat plenty of grass when they're outside. I used to have them in a pen that I moved around a lot, and they'd "mow" the grass pretty well. I think they prefer bugs, worms, and seeds, but they definitely eat some grass too. (How much energy they can get from it, I don't know.) – Aaron B. Sep 23 2011 at 16:27

LOL They eat grass for sure along with bugs and scraps. Our neighbours chickens completely demolished our lawn in Mexico! It was the only green feed for miles around. – henny Sep 23 2011 at 22:23

Paleo_Hutch · Accepted Answer · 2011-09-23 07:31:25Z UTC

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Cows are meant to eat grass so they are healthier by doing so. If they are forced to eat grain it poisons them - just like it poisons us.

Fowl is able to eat grain, insects, kitchen scraps etc and so they are healthy in doing so. Of course the best fowl to buy is organic as they are able to forage for their own food, which means their diets are more healthily balanced for them.

Paleo isn't just about eating meats that have been fed on grass it's about eating meats that have been fed on the foods they were supposed to.

answered Sep 23 2011 at 7:31

Paleo_Hutch
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In many places around the world buying organic meat doesn't necessarily mean that the animal got to forage as it was meant to. I know in Australia you can buy organic chicken that has been matured in a shed and fed 'healthy' organic whole grains. – Rhubarb Sep 23 2011 at 7:56

how can I determine if chickens were raised this way? free range? – balor123 Sep 23 2011 at 14:26

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look for "pastured" – Payam Sep 23 2011 at 16:59

Personally knowing the farmer is the only way. There is no legal (USA) definition for the word pastured when it comes to poultry. A CAFO can legally claim pastured if the building is surrounded by pasture - or any other definition that they choose. – mth Sep 24 2011 at 1:58

Hi, Yes of course I am talking from a UK/EU point of view. My apologies Rhubab, I should have considred different countries will have different rules. Here in the UK the term organic is taken very seriously and our 'soil association' only allows organic marks to animals that have also been allowed to have better than free range conditions. Even if they were fed 'organic' feed, keeping them in factory farm conditions is not the 'organic' way they should grow and thrive so this prevents them from getting an organic seal of approval (or so I am led to believe). – Paleo_Hutch Oct 3 2011 at 12:51

Daniel Kirsner · Answer 2 · 2011-09-23 07:46:08Z UTC

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http://askville.amazon.com/natural-diet-chicken/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=3843745

http://www.wildturkeyzone.com/wildturkey/species4.htm

answered Sep 23 2011 at 7:46

Daniel Kirsner
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Bingo. A chicken might eat some grains during it's normal foraging, however it is by no means the bulk of their diet. – Rhubarb Sep 23 2011 at 7:52

Nemesis · Answer 3 · 2011-09-23 11:26:29Z UTC

Ground birds such as poultry eat (or are supposed to eat) an omnivorous diet which includes: Nuts, seeds, berries, greens, insects and worms. Basically anything that is on the ground is fair game for poultry. Just like large parrots are supposed to be fed a variety of fruits, nuts and vegetables--they can live off of fortified seed and do okay, but having fresh food available to eat is really best for them.

The big push in recent years to feed chickens an all-vegetarian diet is due to a lot of commercial battery farms grinding up the useless male chicks in with the chicken feed for the hens' source of protein. Decried by animal activists (as it should be), the new all-veg diet has been touted as "healthy" when it's really just a stunt to cater to PETA. Same as "cage-free" and "free-range"--chickens often never see the sun or get to be out in the open, they're simply given access to a portion of a shed to roam around.

akman · Answer 4 · 2011-09-23 18:44:51Z UTC

I raise chickens. Mine are allowed to free range throughout my large vegetable garden and chemical-free lawn all summer. In the winter, they get commercial, non-organic, layer feed supplemented with corn and vegetable scraps. Based on my observations, chickens like to eat these forage items (in this order): Bugs, grass, berries, leafy greens, grain/seeds. They also love fish and meat but only get that if I feed it to them. You should see how they go ape-shit over a pile of maggots!

Scott · Answer 5 · 2011-09-23 13:55:14Z UTC

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Early bird gets the worm....

answered Sep 23 2011 at 13:55

Scott
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Wozza · Answer 6 · 2011-09-23 21:51:17Z UTC

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Bugs are to birds what grass is to cows.

answered Sep 23 2011 at 21:51

Wozza
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Kewpie · Answer 7 · 2011-09-23 23:29:52Z UTC

Organic is virtually meaningless when it comes to meats. It just means the feed is organic; it doesn't tell you anything about the conditions the animals were raised in or whether they ever saw the sun. Chickens and turkeys eat a wide range of foods and that is as it should be. You should ask if it is pastured and if its supplemental feed is organic and GMO-free.

The Loon · Answer 8 · 2011-09-23 17:19:49Z UTC

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Early bird gets the kale, too. But, does this sound too vegan to be paleo?

answered Sep 23 2011 at 17:19

The Loon
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If Beef is supposed to be grass fed, then what is chicken and Turkey supposed to be?

8 Answers