Chick feed?

[hmillie]

First time with baby chicks, what do you guys start your day olds on? I've read a couple different things online so now I don't know what to go with. I would like to avoid medicated, but also don't want my day old chicks not to make it. Any advice would be great! Thanks.

 

[Jensownzoo]

I did use medicated feed for the first bag. I figured that with the stress of getting shipped in January...in a snowstorm...that helping them out by keeping coccidia in check while they recovered only made sense. The bag of feed lasted about 10 days, then I switched them to non-medicated. I feel that I made the right decision as 6 of them had loose stools and didn't grow the first week, but recovered. Combatting unchecked coccidiosis would have likely done them in.

 

[sumi]

Welcome to BYC

I start mine on a good quality chick starter and start introducing treats when they are around 2-3 weeks old. I'm personally not hassled about medicated vs non-medicated. Here is a bit more info on feeding chicks and older birds:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/feeding-chickens-an-introductory-guide

 

[azygous]

Medicated chick feed isn't what it sounds like. It has a low dose of a medicine in it to head off coccidiosis, and it isn't toxic on the chicks or hard on their systems at all. It's not the same as antibiotics.

It's really no big deal. Don't worry about it. It can't hurt your chicks.

 

[realsis]

I personally use medicated feed at first. I guess im kind of paranoid. I would rather have a little extra precautions.