Best Vitamins For Chickens

There was a great need to update the previous post on chicken vitamins because most readers on the social platform want to know how to source these vitamins through the natural form possible. This brings about this update.

Derived from plant or animal sources, vitamins are needed in small quantities for normal growth and activity. Chickens need every known vitamin in some amount, and unlike their needs for energy and protein, their vitamin requirements remain fairly steady year-round.

However, a flock’s vitamin requirement are interrelated with the must be balanced against other nutritional components such as protein, minerals, and energy whose sources also contain vitamins.

The table below has stated in a concise terms the list of the best vitamins for chicken, their roles, deficiency and possible source.

You can have the table handy while diagnosing your birds matching it with health issue signal and the possible steps to take so as to prevent damage or death.

FAT SOLUBLE VITAMINS
VITAMINS		ROLE	DEFICIENCY SIGN			SOURCE
A		Vision, growth, strong bones, immunity, antioxidant	Weakness, slow growth or emaciation, poor vision, reduce laying, low hatchability, blood spots in eggs, respiratory distress			Green Forage
D		Enable calcium absorption	Rickets, thin and soft shell eggs with low hatchability, leg weakness			Sunshine, cod liver oil
E		Antioxidant, immunity, reproduction	Encephalomalacia, Reduced fertility in cock, low hatchability of eggs			Cod liver oil, corn oil, soybean oil, wheat germ
K		Blood Clotting	Easy bruising and bleeding			Alfalfa, leafy dark greens
Vitamin C helps prevent disease both as an antioxidant and by reducing the harmful effect of stress. Chicken make their own vitamin C and do not need a supplement, except when the absorption of vitamin C and other nutrients is inhibited by stress, such as might occur because of hot weather, overcrowding or the presence of a disease. Supplementing your flock’s diet with a source of vitamin C can help them overcome heat stress, but be careful with vitamin C supplement (ascorbic acid) as too much can upset digestion and cause diarrhea. A better option is treating your chickens to some fresh produce. Among the best sources of vitamin C are uncooked pumpkin and other squash, sweet potatoes, and leafy dark greens.
	Vitamin B complex
Vitamin	Role			Deficiency	Source
B1 Thiamin	Healthy nerve cells			Failure to eat, Inflamed nerves, death	Legumes, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, wheat brain
B2 Riboflavin	Antioxidant; growth; red blood cell production, metabolize vitamin B6			Emaciation while eating well, diarrhea, leg paralysis curled toe paralysis death	Soybeans, sesame seeds, wheat germs, whole grains,  dry milk products
B3Niacin	Metabolize carbohydrates, fats and protein, hormone production, blood circulation			Swollen hocks bowed legs	Fish meal, sunflower seeds
B5 Pantothenic acid	Red blood cell production, healthy digestive tract, body fat			Sores on feet and face, rough broken feathers, death	Corn, legumes, sunflower seed, sweet potatoes, wheat bran, whey
B6 Pyridoxine	Healthy nerve cell, brain function, hormone production, red blood cell production			Muscle weakness, death	Legumes, milk, sunflower seed, wheat germ
B7 Biotin Vitamin H	Metabolize carbohydrates, fats, amino acids, strengthen feathers, beaks, and claws			Sores on feet and face, clipped tendon	Brewer’s yeast, legume, oats, wheat germ, manufactured in the intestine
B9 Folic Acid	Brain function; DNA and RNA production; red blood cell production, growth			Slow growth, poor feathering, anemia	Leafy dark greens, legumes, milk, root vegetables, wheat germ, whole grains
B12 Cobalamin	Healthy nerve cells; DNS=A and RNA production, red blood cell production, metabolize carbohydrates and fats			Slow growth, small eggs with low hatchability; death	Milk, fish meal, livestock manure

Vitamin Supplements

Trying to furnish your chickens each of the vitamins individually are impractical and so is attempting to identify signs of a deficiency in any specific vitamin. If you suspect your chickens are suffering from a vitamin deficiency, the best approach is to provide a complete supplement, of which many different brands are available specifically designed for poultry.

Giving your chickens a vitamin supplement will boost their immunity during times of stress, such as when their bodies are battling a disease, when the weather is unpleasant, during a move, before and after a poultry show, and during the breeding season.

To counteract any potential deficiencies in the breeder flock diet, chicks get off to a better start when given a supplement during their first 3 weeks of life. Keep in mind, though, that some vitamins interact synergistically with each other. And an excess of some vitamins can interact detrimentally with themselves be toxic. 

Instead of making chickens healthier, the unnecessary use of packaged vitamin supplements can have the opposite of the desired effect. Never use a supplement, including electrolytes, for more than 10 days. If you are formulating your own rations, the best way to guard against vitamin deficiencies is to include a premix (for example, Fertrell Nutri-Balancer).

Premixes are available in both standard and organic formulations. Since too much can be as detrimental as too little, carefully follow the directions on the label to avoid overdosing on your chickens.