5 day old chicks eating shavings

[MaransGuy]

My chicks go on shavings around day 3-4. I am sorry to hear about your chicks, Kristina, and do not want to start anything, but having chicks on shavings for 20 minutes would not kill them. Even if they ate all they could possibly stuff into their crops, 20 minutes later, they would have impacted crops and waste away over a period of 2-3 days if not treated. If the chicks were dead in 20 mintues there had to be something else that caused their death. Overheating, toxic fumes, anything else environmental that the lucky two were removed from before they succumbed to it as well. I just don't want other people to have a fear of using shavings when they are perfectly safe.

Richard

 

[CoopDelisle]

Are we talking about the same pine shavings? The ones I got are pretty big. The chicks don't even give it a second thought now, and it has only been one day.

 

[Henrietta23]

I wonder if these shavings were too small. The chicks ran around with the big pieces in their mouths and were too funny. There were smaller skinnier pieces that they pecked at and ate.

 

[countryboy]

henrietta be thankful its just shavings, i was suprised when mine were a week and a half what all they tasted, then everyone else wanted a taste.

 

[MissPrissy]

Did you get the shavings at TSC? I hate their's. The last bag I got was like saw dust and not at all like pine shavings.

 

[Henrietta23]

No, these were from a pet store. I didn't get to Agway where I get the big bags for the coop. It was small animal bedding which may have just been too small?

 

[Tuffoldhen]

There are different sizes of wood shavings...I use to get mine at the local feed store but they changed brands on me and what they got it was like sawdust so now I drive 16 miles to my TSC (and not MissPrissys)..lol..I've always gotten nice big shavings at TSC.....

 

[Henrietta23]

Okay, I'm going to look for bigger shavings and wait a bit before trying again. I'm going to go broke on paper towels! And I'm going to be doing this all over again in April with 14 more!!!

 

[MaransGuy]

The shavings I use vary in size from around 1/8" up to about 3/4" or so. I don't remember the brand name off the top of my head but I knw the bale is plastic wrapped and is red and white with black printing. I buy them in the compressed bales that expand out to almost 10 cu. ft. It is actually harder to keep the chicks clean on paper towels unless you are changing them several times a day. That would be expensive!

Richard

 

[Henrietta23]

Quote:
I am and it is! Those are the bales I buy for my outdoor chickens but I didn't want to use any of those since they've been outside for a while. I'll buy a new bale o use with the chicks and watch them.
Thanks for sharing all your insite and experiences everyone!