Can Chickens Eat Tomatoes – What Do You Think?

Here is an interesting question put forward about can chickens eat tomatoes?

Now I know that some people out there might be a bit hesitant about feeding their backyard chickens tomatoes because they are a member of the deadly nightshade family.

So should your chickens steer clear of them?

Can Chickens Eat Tomatoes?

Or you could be saying…

Are tomatoes harmful to chickens?

Yes…

Tomatoes are a member of the deadly nightshade family if you did not know, and now you are probably worried about even eating them yourself.

But you do not have to worry about yourself, or your chickens in your backyard eating them.

Because they are a member of this family, it does not mean that they are not ok to eat.

But there are some factors about tomatoes that I will tell you about as you read on.

I have given my chickens tomatoes that have been leftovers from a meal and would rather give them to the chickens than throw them on the compost heap.

And my chickens were glad for my choice in steering in their direction with the tomatoes and not to the compost itself…

Can Chickens Eat Tomato Leaves And The Plants?

Now, this is where the cons of the tomato plant come in, where your chickens are concerned.

The stems and leaves of the tomato plant should never be fed to chickens.

Because they are a member of the nightshade family, the green parts of the actual plant itself do contain solanine which is toxic to most animals.

We eat ripe tomatoes for our meals,s with the exception of the occasional fried green tomato that we might have.

But I do not think this is a common thing even amongst people to fry green tomatoes or make a habit of it.

Green tomatoes are not eaten by us so much, so they are also not suitable for your chickens as well.

Being unripe, green tomatoes can make your chickens sick, just as it would ourselves.

That is a good indication for not giving your chickens them if they are unripe.
It has to do with something in the change of the tomato as it ripens, that the toxins in tomatoes itself dissipate.

Just like in the wild, you will hardly ever see a wild animal touch certain fruit until it is ripe for eating…

Common sense tells us as humans, that if it is not good for our bodies, then it should also not be safe to feed our backyard chickens.

Can Chickens Eat Tomato Stems

Again…

With this question, as with the tomatoes leaves of the plant itself, the tomato stems are also toxic and therefore should not be given to your chickens.

You will see that a chicken in the vegetable patch has its own instincts to tell it that the tomato plant is got good for them to eat.
So in a way…

Your chickens do look after themselves in these matters.

Even if they do have a peck at it, the bitter taste is not to their liking and a natural indication that this is not for eating and can be harmful to them.

Can Chickens Eat Tomato Vines

Here is another question that comes up about tomatoes and chickens…

As mentioned before, it does not matter if it is the leaves of the stems.

All parts of the greenery of the tomato plant with the exception of the tomato itself should be steered clear of.

See also Can Chickens Eat Watermelon - What Do You Think?

Are Tomato Plants Poisonous To hens?

I sometimes smile at the questions that do come up.

But I feel that it is important to answer them as there are people out there who are asking them and want to clarify.

No matter where they are when it comes to the experience they have with their chickens.

Whether it is your herns or roosters'

It is no different, a chicken has the same makeup.

So what is not good for your hen is also not good for your rooster as well.

Can Chickens Eat Tomatoes Dried

If you decide to dry your tomatoes of they just have been in the sun for too long and end up dried.

It is fine to give your chickens dried tomatoes.

As they do not have teeth and only a beak.

It is harder for them to eat dried tomatoes.

But rest assured that a chicken will have a go at it anyway.

They will bash it on the ground to break away pieces of it and then consume the little bits of dried tomatoes.

If there are pieces that are just too hard for your chicken, they are left with two choices.

Either to swallow it whole.

And if the piece of the dried tomato is just too big for them, well…
Then they will just leave it and walk away.

Will Chickens Eat Tomato Plants

As said previously, will they eat a tomato plant?

No.

They might have a peck at it and find it bitter.

This distasteful taste is there in nature as an indicator to any animal to be wary.
It either means that it is just not right to eat because it is dangerous.

Or it is not ready to be eaten until it tastes nice to their taste buds.
Can chickens eat tomatoes by judging by the colour of the plant or fruit and also the smell gives them an indicator as well?

You bet they can…

Nature has a way of working things out.

Natural instincts are there for a reason and will keep life moving along smoothly enough.

Can Chickens Eat Tomatoes Safely

Well…

I have never seen a chicken choke on a tomato before.

They usually just peck away at it.

Breaking open the skin to get at the juicy contents first, then proceed to peck away at the tomatoes skin.

I find that chickens enjoy getting stuck into fruit, which tomatoes are if you knew that or not.

And it gives them a challenge, especially when your fellow chickens become competitors when a juicy morsel of food is put in front of them.

Can chickens eat tomatoes when there is a lot of barging, pecking and bullying when it comes to a piece of food that all the chickens want?

They find a way…

And they really do not want to share.

It’s all for themselves when it comes to food
Ad the table manners go out the window as well…

Can Chickens Eat Baby Tomatoes

I find today, that because tomatoes are grown commercially, they are being genetically mucked around with, to make them last longer in the shops.

And this has lead to something missing.

And that is the taste.

Many of the big tomatoes that you get in a shop these days do not taste as sweet.

No…

Not as good as the tomatoes that you would grow in your own garden.

So, as many people are doing.

Myself included.

See also Can Chickens Eat Bread - What Do You Think?

Are looking to buy smaller tomatoes such as cherry tomatoes that taste more as tomatoes should be.

And buy these rather than the bigger ones.

I am sure that if you go to the markets in Europe and other markets around the world that the tomatoes are prized for their taste and grown naturally.

Now I did say markets where they are not grown industrially but on the smallholdings that grow vegetables for small markets.

So whether you call the baby tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, your chickens will love them and they will not have any trouble with eating them.

Just because they are smaller, you might think that they might just swallow them whole.

Well, I for one know that a chicken is going to peck at the smallest tomato because they want to get at the taste of the sweet tomato.

Can chickens eat tomatoes by just swallowing them down whole…

It is not going to give them that pleasure to the direct taste of the inside of the tomato itself.

Can Bantam Chickens Eat Tomatoes

Here is an interesting question to smile about.

Can bantam chickens eat tomatoes…

Can chickens eat tomatoes?

All chickens whether big breeds of chickens or smaller breeds of chickens like bantams are all the same.

They have systems that are not different.

The bantam chicken is what you would say the dwarf of the chicken breed.
So size does not mean anything when it comes to what they may put into their beaks

So no problem for your bantam chickens to eat tomatoes big or small.
The tomatoes I men…

Can Chickens Eat Tomato Peelings

Tomato peels are safe for your chickens to eat just as much as the inside of the tomato or its little seeds.

The seeds are digested by the chickens to come out the other end somewhere else to grow more tomato plants in another area.
That’s how plants get round.

The tomato peels will not be as sweet as the inside of the tomatoes themselves.
Being a little bit sourer.

But not by much, so your chickens will choose to eat the inside of the tomatoes first, then move on to the skins if they are still hungry.

Which, I have always found that a chicken will eat the skin, as some parts of the inside of the tomato will still be attached to the skin.

So down the chicken’s throat, they go…

Do Chickens Eat Cooked Tomatoes

Have you not seen a chicken make a run towards the sight of a cooked tomato?

I have, and it can get ugly when they have competition from other hens.

There is a lot of barging each other away and if two chickens get one piece of tomato between them.

Then you have a tug of war going on.

And it often ends up with the slice of cooked tomato breaking.

They both have a piece to gobble up.

Cooked tomatoes are probably even more of a treat to the chickens because it is soft and cooking does bring out the flavour of the tomatoes as well.

Much to your chicken’s delight.

So no problems there with giving them your leftover cooked tomatoes leftover from your dinner plate.

So…

Can chickens eat tomatoes?

I hope that you are now aware that your chickens can eat tomatoes in many forms and you go safely down to your backyard chicken coop with tomatoes in hand.