At three months old, chickens should be eating grower feed with 16 to 18% protein as the core of their diet. A 12-week-old bird typically eats 75 to 85 grams of feed per day, and this is the stage where you can start carefully introducing treats, greens, and kitchen scraps alongside that base ration.
Grower Feed Is the Foundation
Three-month-old chickens fall squarely in the “pullet” or grower stage. They’ve outgrown starter feed (which runs 18 to 20% protein) but aren’t ready for layer feed yet. Grower feed, at 16 to 18% protein, gives them enough fuel for steady bone and muscle development without the excess calcium found in layer formulas. Most grower feeds come in crumble or pellet form, and either works fine at this age.
If you’re raising meat birds (broilers), the protein needs are higher, around 20 to 24%. Standard grower feed won’t cut it for broilers, so look for a broiler-specific formula if that’s your situation.
You can offer grower feed free-choice, meaning you keep the feeder full and let birds eat as much as they want throughout the day. At 12 weeks, each bird will go through roughly 75 to 85 grams daily. That number climbs gradually as they grow, so check feeders more often if they’re emptying out before the end of the day.
When to Switch to Layer Feed
Don’t rush the transition to layer feed. Layer formulas contain extra calcium to support eggshell production, and feeding that calcium to young birds whose bodies aren’t producing eggs yet can stress their kidneys. The right time to switch is when your hens start laying, which typically happens between 16 and 20 weeks of age. Some breeds take longer.
Physical signs that laying is approaching include reddening and swelling of the comb and wattles, squatting behavior when you reach toward them, and increased interest in nesting boxes. Once you see the first egg, you can begin mixing layer feed into the grower feed over the course of a week or so until the switch is complete.
Safe Treats and Kitchen Scraps
Three months is the earliest recommended age to start offering kitchen scraps, and even then, treats should stay a small portion of the overall diet. Too many scraps displace the balanced nutrition in grower feed, which can slow growth and cause health problems down the road.
Good options include:
- Fruits: apples (remove seeds), berries, watermelon, cucumbers, ripe tomatoes
- Greens: lettuce, kale, chard, spinach, carrot tops
- Vegetables: broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, zucchini, pumpkin
- Grains: cooked rice, oatmeal, wheat
- Starches: cooked potato, sweet potato, cooked or dried corn, peas
Chop larger items into pieces small enough for a young bird to manage. Scatter treats on the ground rather than piling them in one spot so every bird gets a share and they get the mental stimulation of foraging.
Foods That Are Toxic to Chickens
A few common kitchen items are genuinely dangerous. Raw or dry beans are near the top of the list. They contain toxins that are almost always fatal to poultry, and illness can set in after eating as few as three or four beans, sometimes killing within an hour. Always cook beans thoroughly before offering any to your flock.
Other foods to keep away from your birds:
- Avocado skins and pits: contain a compound called persin that causes respiratory failure
- Chocolate: even small amounts can cause cardiac arrest in birds, with dark chocolate being the most dangerous
- Green potatoes and peels: contain solanine, which is toxic (sweet potatoes are safe, since they’re a different plant family)
- Apple seeds and cherry pits: contain cyanide
- Coffee grounds: caffeine interferes with calcium absorption and can cause seizures or death
- Rhubarb and its leaves: toxic to poultry
- Nightshade leaves: the leaves and stems of tomato and eggplant plants contain solanine (ripe tomato fruit is fine)
- Moldy food of any kind: mold is a fungus, and no amount is safe
When in doubt, skip it. There are plenty of safe options that your flock will love just as much.
Grit for Digestion
Chickens don’t have teeth. They rely on small stones held in their gizzard to grind food. If your birds are eating anything besides commercial feed, including greens, bugs, or kitchen scraps, they need access to grit. By 12 weeks, chickens should be on “developer” or “layer” size grit, which is coarser than the fine starter grit used for younger chicks.
Offer grit free-choice in a small dish or hopper. Chickens self-regulate and only eat as much as they need. You can also mix grit with whole grains at a ratio of about one part grit to four parts grain. If you notice your flock eating unusually large amounts of grit, switch to the next larger particle size.
Birds that free-range on dirt and gravel often pick up enough natural grit on their own, but keeping a dish available ensures nobody goes without.
Water Needs at Three Months
A rough guideline for young chickens is about 5 milliliters of water per day for each day of age. That puts a 90-day-old bird at roughly 475 milliliters, or just under two cups, per day. Hot weather, dry feed, and physical activity all push that number higher.
Clean water matters more than quantity. Dirty waterers breed bacteria and discourage drinking, which leads to dehydration faster than you’d expect. Rinse and refill waterers daily, and in warm weather, check them twice a day. If you’re using an open dish, elevate it slightly off the ground so birds don’t kick bedding or dirt into it. Nipple-style waterers stay cleaner but take a short training period if your flock hasn’t used them before.