Farting is one of the most awkward and funny topics you can encounter, despite being a natural phenomenon among humans. But do you ever pause to hear your chicken fart? Well, now the question is that, do chickens fart?
Yes, chickens do fart as normally as humans do, and it is a significantly expected occurrence. It is a result of the chicken’s digestive process and is a sign of healthy digestion. If that happens continually, it could signal an unhealthy digestive system and might need medical intervention.
I am sure reading all this is intriguing you to dive deeper into this topic. Then what are we waiting for? Let’s proceed to find out why chickens fart and when it could become a subject of attention.
What Is The Reason Behind The Fart Of Chickens?
Now that you know that chickens fart, it should surprise you to know that animal farting is natural and common. It is prevalent in all animals. You tend to cuddle around your dogs or cats more, so chicken farting sometimes gets unnoticed and seems unusual.
However, farting is a common occurrence, and chickens are no different from humans in terms of farting. There can be a few reasons explaining the common occurrence of this in chickens.
Chickens are omnivorous mammals
Chickens are omnivorous mammals, which explains that they tend to hog on just about anything they consume.
It is a form of releasing unwanted air
Furthermore, chickens, just like humans, tend to swallow air while they drink or eat. Farting is the body’s natural way to get rid of unwanted or excess gas lodged inside the digestive system.
This also explains why the chicken excreta tends to have air bubbles.
Internal reaction to digestion
Moreover, farting can also be the result of the reaction of the digested food and bacteria internally. This caused the body to react by releasing gas.
Non-digestion of carbohydrates
Sometimes, the carbohydrates of the food chickens eat are not digested completely. The result is that when carb-loaded foods are not processed properly, they are broken into carbon dioxide and hydrogen, which are released in the form of fart.
Is Chicken Fart Unpleasant?
Now, this is humorous. Chicken farts, like humans, are never actually pleasing. Farmers, working on a commercial basis, can better explain how nauseating chicken farts can be.
A fart is never expected to have an amazing scent of flowers or perfumes. However, chicken farts should never be consistently unpleasant.
That being said, farts are not always equally pestering. But you will not come across smelly farts at all times. However, you can never always expect chicken farts to smell of perfumes.
Wrong food choices make the fart smelly
Chickens do tend to have prominently smelly farts. Farmers have been trying to figure out the root cause of this, to make the farts smell less bad. One of the biggest reasons for the unpleasant stench of the fart has been concluded as the dietary choices made for the chickens.
A research conducted by the Animal Nutrition Journal unveiled a straight link between the food choice of chickens and the stench of their fart. The research concluded that high levels of diacetyl and methanethiol as the main components resulting in bad farts.
Sulfur is the biggest culprit
Additionally, sulfur is also one of the leading causes of nauseating smell. The factor associated with sulfur is common in humans and animals alike.
Which Foods to Avoid Feeding to Chickens?
One of the root causes, as aforementioned, is certain types of choices of food that result in an unhealthy digestive system. Hence, the stinking fart!
Green leafy vegetables or dairy products
On a very general note, foods such as green leafy vegetables, legumes, or dairy products are unhealthy. Such foods can give birth to serious problems of gas, bloat, or other gastrointestinal issues.
So, chickens, similar to humans, can get gas from them and are thus best kept at a distance.
Soybean and canola seeds disturb the digestive system
Specifically, studies reveal that there are more likely foods to cause chickens to emit gaseous emissions than others. They tend to wreak havoc in the digestive tract of chickens.
Any food that comprises soybean or canola seeds causes digestive problems. These foods are rich in sulfur and amino acids, leading to the most unpleasant farts in chickens.
This is because a relationship or bond exists between the microbial metabolism of such substances/ compounds within the digestive system.
Spicy food
Furthermore, what worsens the case are the foods loaded with spices and mixes.
You should always keep any kind of spicy leftover away from the reach of chickens as they are believed to cause trouble. There is no strong evidence proving this.
However, if given in moderately, they might not cause any digestive issues.
What Can You Do To Cease The Smell of Chicken Fart?
Unluckily, there is no way that you can completely do away with the unpleasant chicken fart.
As explained above, a chicken fart is a by-product of the digestion process and many factors. And, controlling these is not entirely possible.
Having said that, it does not conclude that we can do nothing to decrease the foul-smell.
Buying the appropriate foods and refraining from the harmful ones can do wonders in this aspect. You can always procure high-quality foods that are devoid of random additives and ingredients.
Some of the ways to diminish the smell are:
- Farts are natural and not within the chicken’s control. If you happen to smell a foul-smelling fart, you should not jump to the worst conclusions. If that happens regularly, then you need to take precautions.
- Analyzing the chickens’ diet should be your first resort if the smell is frequent in the coop. Use good-quality food that is devoid of the ingredients mentioned above. Also, foods like green vegetables, dairy products should be fed in moderation.
- If the smell tends to persist after the above precautions, this could be your cue to seek medical intervention to help resolve the issue. A vet can best unveil any grave digestive issue.
- Investing in high-quality bedding can also come to your rescue. Not only will it help deal with excreta, but it also will keep the coop hygienic and fresh. Additionally, hemp-bedding is also an ideal pocket-friendly choice for chickens.
- It is something that common sense dictates that cleaning the coop regularly will also ensure a less foul environment, if not stench-free.
- Also, make sure to buy a coop that has enough room for ventilation. That way, the air will not remain trapped for longer durations and can make in and out easily.
- Lastly, if nothing of the above works, you can always procure a refresher that can always keep the bad odor at bay.
Having thrown the above tips, it is never likely to achieve a state of the good smelling coop. However, following some of the above tips will help keep the coop environment clean.
Chicken Farts Are Completely Normal
There could be multiple ways to answer this. But, if you are solely asking from the point of view of health, then farting, like humans, is normal in chickens. This is not a matter of grave concern and is an expected outcome of the natural digestion process.
Farmers who are working commercially are more likely to try their hands at combating foul fart smell. The reason is that poultry farming makes them work in close contact with the chickens to make their ends meet. The stink could be intolerable at times.
However, if you own just a few chickens, you’ll find the smelly farts easily manageable. Moreover, chickens, unlike dogs or cats, tend to live away from our private space. Making them live away in highly ventilated coops is the best way to deal with this matter.
They are only a matter of concern when they tend to pass wind continually, the smell of which tends to worsen every time. If that is the situation, then you might consult a vet for better guidance.
Conclusion: Do Chickens Fart?
We cannot deny the fact that this subject of chicken farting is not a very pleasing one. However, we are sure most of you were intrigued to dive further into this amusing yet entertaining topic.
The whole idea of this was to educate our readers about what is considered a healthy or an unhealthy sign of chicken farting. Farting is normal and a sign of a healthy chicken gut. It is only when the stench of fart gets stinky that we need to seek professional advice.
Otherwise, for a few chicken owners, cleaning and ventilating the coop can easily help combat the smelly farts. It is mostly because chicken coops are best placed outside, away from personal living areas.
Just never skip doing your best to keep them safe and healthy. It is not just the chickens, but you also benefit from it.
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