Chicken starter question

Date sort Score sort
Neptune

Neptune

In the Brooder
5 Years
Aug 16, 2014
13
1
24
Just getting started with the coop! But I'm reading reading reading! I noticed the small 5ish lb. bag of chick feed and the 40lb. bag. We are getting 4-5 chicks. (all we are allowed in the hood) how big of bag do I need and is the larger bag something I could mix with regular feed? Next, opinions medicated or not medicated?
 
Well, that depends. Are you starting with new chicks? And how many??? If you are starting with chicks I would strictly feed them medicated chick starter...by itself. I see you said you saw a 5 lb. bag and a 40 lb. bag. I always bought mine in the 25 lb. bag....easier to handle and you go through it fast enough that it doesn't get old/moldy on you.
 
4-5 chicks from a feed store, couple weeks old if that. They mail order them Sept/Oct. I'm in AZ. How long do you feed them starter.
 
Neptune said:
4-5 chicks from a feed store, couple weeks old if that. They mail order them Sept/Oct. I'm in AZ. How long do you feed them starter.
Click to expand...
I feed chick starter all the way until point of lay. In fact, 2 of my 4 Black Australorp ladies are laying now and still on the tail-end of this last bag of medicated chick starter. The next bag will then be Purina Layer Feed Crumbles. I personally do not like the pellets...many hens will just kick them out of the feeder .. chickens, go figure!

When you do get your chicks be sure to put a little Apple Cider Vinegar in their waterer. This gives them a little boost. I kept ACV in their waterer until they were moved to the coop.

When they're about 2 weeks old you can give them "occasional" treats such as dried mealworms (they go CRAZY for them!), a small chunk of sod/grass (they love picking at it). You don't want to go overboard on the treats.

Have you thought about your brooder and how you're going to set it up yet?
 
Last edited:
I have a plan, sort of. The cardboard box with a heat lamp. I have access to cardboard boxes of all sizes for free. Also housing that in a spare bedroom as our kids have flown our coop to college! We have indoor outdoor cats, so I can keep them safe until they go outside. I have seen postings about chicks going to the coop at 4 weeks in AZ. We are doing a coop and attached run about 7 ft by 12ft using hardware cloth and 2x4 construction. What age do they try to fly out and when do you-if ever clip wings? They will be able to run around the yard with supervision daily. One of our cats eats her fair share of turtle doves. She will be my predictor that will need to be watched!
 
Neptune said:
I have a plan, sort of. The cardboard box with a heat lamp. I have access to cardboard boxes of all sizes for free. Also housing that in a spare bedroom as our kids have flown our coop to college! We have indoor outdoor cats, so I can keep them safe until they go outside. I have seen postings about chicks going to the coop at 4 weeks in AZ. We are doing a coop and attached run about 7 ft by 12ft using hardware cloth and 2x4 construction. What age do they try to fly out and when do you-if ever clip wings? They will be able to run around the yard with supervision daily. One of our cats eats her fair share of turtle doves. She will be my predictor that will need to be watched!
Click to expand...
Sorry, you will rue the day you raise chicks in the house. been there done that, never again. When they lose their down it comes off as a very fine dust. Covers everything! You will spend hours carefully hand cleaning every nook and cranny. Do yourself a favor an brood them in the garage. Go on craigslist and get a big wire dog crate. Get a piece of hardware cloth or chicken wire and zip tie it to the sides. so nothing can stick their paws thru the bars. some folk use cardboard around the sides so the chips on the floor don't slide out much.
Frankly, I use a triple thick sided watermelon corral I get at the supermarket. is about 15 sq. ft. and will raise up to 7 chicks to 3 months old. Lay a tarp on the floor. Set up the sturdy corral, dump in the chips. Cut and make a "lid" of chicken wire which is 4 inches longer than all 4 sides. I use 2x4 cut to fit and use fence staples to affix the 2x4's to the sides of the wire. When I put the "lid" on the 2x4's hang down and keep the top on. When I want to open either end, I lay a board across the corral as a resting place for the 2x4 holding down that end. It works well,actually. The only thing I would do different if I were you is put duct tape over the hand holes in the 4 cornes because they are big enough to get a cats paw thru. I use an upside-down tub to stage their waterer so they don't kick chips in it. The feeder gets hung from a old broomstick which spans the brooder and rests in "V" shaped notches I cut in the top edges on either side. I use an old dog collar to affix the feeder to the broomstick. That way I can raise or lower it as needed.
Best Success,
Karen
Roof your run with chicken wire. You will be glad you did. For shade, get a tarp at Wal-Mart and a bunch of those bungees with the red ball on the end. drape the tarp over the chicken wired roof. Put the bungees in the grommet holes and affix the red ball end over heavy nails you have nailed in the uprights...just low enough that the bungees have some stretch in them but not pulled extremely tight. That will keep the roof tarp on but give it enough "give" so it won't rip in windy conditions.
 
Last edited:
Lots of info! Thanks! We are roofing it! (Cats) we will have to see how the garage temps are. Well over 100 degrees inside. But now the night temps are low 80's. Much better than 98 all night.
 
Neptune said:
Lots of info! Thanks! We are roofing it! (Cats) we will have to see how the garage temps are. Well over 100 degrees inside. But now the night temps are low 80's. Much better than 98 all night.
Click to expand...
If your temps are well over 100 you should brood them in the house instead. That way you can control their heat with the heat lamp, as temps over 100 will literally cook them. All the best!
 
iwiw60 said:
If your temps are well over 100 you should brood them in the house instead. That way you can control their heat with the heat lamp, as temps over 100 will literally cook them. All the best!
Click to expand...

It's not well over 100 here, but pretty close at 95-100 and much more humid than AZ. I'm having no problems with my 17 day olds outside in a small coop with no heat lamp. Plenty of ventilation, shade and fresh water is key during the day. After all, they eventually have to live outside the heat, so they might as well get use to it now. At night, when it dips to the upper 70s, I put them in the box they came in and they huddle together.
 
Last edited:
David1998 said:
It's not well over 100 here, but pretty close at 95-100 and much more humid than AZ. I'm having no problems with my 17 day olds outside in a small coop with no heat lamp. Plenty of ventilation, shade and fresh water is key during the day. After all, they eventually have to live outside the heat, so they might as well get use to it now. At night, when it dips to the upper 70s, I put them in the box they came in and they huddle together.
Click to expand...
Yes, I agree with what you said, but the OP is dealing with baby chicks, not 17-day-olds....just sayin'
 

Similar threads

RoosterJuice
    • Like
Can I mix medicated and non-medicated chick starter?
2
Replies
13
Views
1K
rosemarythyme
rosemarythyme
T
    • Like
Help with confusion over electrolytes and medicated feed
2
Replies
15
Views
476
Ridgerunner
Ridgerunner
teamtmo
    • Like
New 1 week old chicks with runny poop
Replies
4
Views
1K
Petmom 1
P
FalseToast
Chick Starter: Still Good or Bad?
Replies
5
Views
709
FalseToast
FalseToast
ForFlocksSake
    • Like
Should I switch to Non Medicated food?
2 3
Replies
22
Views
2K
BastyPutt
BastyPutt

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom