Apple Cider Vinegar for baby Chicks?

[Browniethechicken]

Is apple cider vinegar good for baby chicks? Someone from the hatchery said to use it diluted in their water when I get my chicks? Is it beneficial? Immune boost? I got the the ACV “with the mother” which is raw. I’m just using this and medicated feed. Do I need more supplements to add?

 

[nuthatched]

Doesn't do much of anything. Chick vitamins with probiotics is much better.

 

[Painted Calls]

Doesn't do much of anything. Chick vitamins with probiotics is much better.

Agreed.

 

[Painted Calls]

You don't need more supplements. Electrolytes are good for the first few days after shipping. After that, just fresh water and feed.

 

[Folly's place]

Agree. Fresh water and a good feed. Many better feeds now include probiotics anyway. Make sure you are reading the mill date on each bag of feed before you buy it, and get something that you can use up within two months of it's mill date.
Mary

 

[Ridgerunner]

Different people use all kinds of things as supplements in either the water or feed. They do that because they honestly feel it benefits the chickens. Some do those things when they first receive the chicks, others may do some of those throughout their lives. Some of us use things totally different or don't use any of them. In my opinion as long as you don't overdo it, you are not going to hurt them and may do some good. I think a good question would be how do you use it.

The only thing I regularly give my chicks is dirt from the run. I have mature chickens out there so my chicks get grit for their system, any probiotics the adults have, and they can start on any flock immunities they need to start on. My goal is to strengthen their immune system so when they are ready to hit the ground their immune system is ready. I give them a small amount of dirt on their second or third day in the brooder and repeat every three days or so. I think it is very important for them to have clean water. As you don't have adults yours won't get any probiotics from your dirt but they will get grit and maybe start building their immune system against some things that might be in the dirt that they will face eventually.

If I have a weak chicken, a newly hatched chick all the way to a mature chicken, I give them a booster. Most chicks are going to be healthy but occasionally you get one that is not doing well at all. You can get various chick boosters from hatcheries or the feed store. Nothing wrong with them. Some people use sugar water. I use hummingbird liquid as I always have some available. The idea is to give them something to boost their energy so they feel like eating or drinking on their own. Sometimes the chicks are late from the post office. I've never had that but that would be a good time to put a booster in their first water. If it is an individual chick or chicken I take a medicine dropper and put a drop of the liquid on the tip of their beak. They should swallow it so do it again. The liquid helps hydrate them as well as the electrolytes giving them energy. By putting a drop on the tip of their beak you don't risk drowning them if you force it down their throat.

I'm not opposed to treating a problem but feeding them the dirt is the only thing I do that is preemptive.

You mentioned medicated feed. I'm not sure how much you know about it and what it is supposed to do. There are often misconceptions about it. First what is the medicine in your medicated feed? That information should be on the label. It is almost always Amprolium but there are a few exceptions. I'll include a write-up I did for another post so the conditions may not suit you precisely.

But some of the important parts: Amprolium is not an antibiotic. The only thing it does is reduce the odds of your chicks coming down with Coccidiosis. It is not a treatment in the dosage in medicated feed, it is a partial preventative. Medicated feed does not give your chicks immunity to Cocciciosis, it allows them to develop immunity if the bug that causes Coccidiosis is present.

First you need to know what the "medicated" is in the medicated feed. It should be on the label. Usually it is Amprolium, Amprol, some such product, but until you read the label, you really don't know. Most "medicated' feed from major brands for chicks that will be layers uses Amprolium, but there are a few out there mostly for broilers, that use other medicines. I'll assume yours is an Amprolium product, but if it is not, then realize everything I say about it may not apply. And it is possible that the "medicated" is Amprolium AND something else.

Amprolium is not an antibiotic. It does not kill anything. It inhibits the protozoa that cause coccidiosis (often called Cocci on this forum) from multiplying in the chicken's system. It does not prevent the protozoa from multiplying; it just slows that multiplication down. There are several different strains of protozoa that can cause Cocci, some more severe than others. Chickens can develop immunity to a specific strain of the protozoa, but that does not give them immunity to all protozoa that cause Cocci.

It is not a big deal for the chicken’s intestines to contain some of the protozoa that cause Cocci. The problem comes in when the number of those protozoa gets huge. The protozoa can multiply in the chicken’s intestines but also in wet manure. For them to reproduce they need some moisture. Slightly damp isn't an issue, soaking wet is. Different protozoa strains have different strengths, but for almost all cases, if you keep the brooder dry, you will not have a problem.

To develop immunity to a specific strain, that protozoa needs to be in the chicks intestines for two or three weeks. The normal sequence is that a chick has the protozoa. It poops and some of the cysts that develop the protozoa come out in the poop. If the poop is slightly damp, those cysts develop and will then develop in the chick's intestines when the chicks eat that poop. This cycle needs go on for a few weeks so all chicks are exposed and they are exposed long enough to develop immunity. A couple of important points here. You do need to watch them to see if they are getting sick. And the key is to keep the brooder dry yet allow some of the poop to stay damp. Not soaking wet, just barely damp. Wet poop can lead to serious problems.

What sometimes happens is that people keep chicks in a brooder and feed them medicated feed while they are in the brooder. Those chicks are never exposed to the Cocci protozoa that lives in the dirt in their run, so they never develop the immunity to it. Then, they are switched to non-medicated feed and put on the ground where they are for the first time exposed to the protozoa. They do not have immunity, they do not have the protection of the medicated feed, so they get sick. Feeding medicated feed while in the brooder was a complete waste.

I do not feed medicated feed. I keep the brooder dry to not allow the protozoa to breed uncontrollably. The third day that they are in the brooder, I take a scoop of dirt from the run and feed it to them so I can introduce the protozoa and they can develop the immunity they need to the strain they need to develop an immunity to. Since I keep my brooder extremely dry and the water clean the protozoa can't reproduce so every three days I give them more dirt from the run so they get more protozoa and can develop immunity. I don't lose chicks to Cocci when they hit the ground.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding medicated feed to chicks, whether the protozoa are present or not. It will not hurt them. They can still develop the immunity they need. But unless the protozoa are present, it also does no good.

If you get your chicks vaccinated for Cocci, do not feed medicated feed. It can negate the vaccinations.

 

[Browniethechicken]

Different people use all kinds of things as supplements in either the water or feed. They do that because they honestly feel it benefits the chickens. Some do those things when they first receive the chicks, others may do some of those throughout their lives. Some of us use things totally different or don't use any of them. In my opinion as long as you don't overdo it, you are not going to hurt them and may do some good. I think a good question would be how do you use it.

The only thing I regularly give my chicks is dirt from the run. I have mature chickens out there so my chicks get grit for their system, any probiotics the adults have, and they can start on any flock immunities they need to start on. My goal is to strengthen their immune system so when they are ready to hit the ground their immune system is ready. I give them a small amount of dirt on their second or third day in the brooder and repeat every three days or so. I think it is very important for them to have clean water. As you don't have adults yours won't get any probiotics from your dirt but they will get grit and maybe start building their immune system against some things that might be in the dirt that they will face eventually.

If I have a weak chicken, a newly hatched chick all the way to a mature chicken, I give them a booster. Most chicks are going to be healthy but occasionally you get one that is not doing well at all. You can get various chick boosters from hatcheries or the feed store. Nothing wrong with them. Some people use sugar water. I use hummingbird liquid as I always have some available. The idea is to give them something to boost their energy so they feel like eating or drinking on their own. Sometimes the chicks are late from the post office. I've never had that but that would be a good time to put a booster in their first water. If it is an individual chick or chicken I take a medicine dropper and put a drop of the liquid on the tip of their beak. They should swallow it so do it again. The liquid helps hydrate them as well as the electrolytes giving them energy. By putting a drop on the tip of their beak you don't risk drowning them if you force it down their throat.

I'm not opposed to treating a problem but feeding them the dirt is the only thing I do that is preemptive.

You mentioned medicated feed. I'm not sure how much you know about it and what it is supposed to do. There are often misconceptions about it. First what is the medicine in your medicated feed? That information should be on the label. It is almost always Amprolium but there are a few exceptions. I'll include a write-up I did for another post so the conditions may not suit you precisely.

But some of the important parts: Amprolium is not an antibiotic. The only thing it does is reduce the odds of your chicks coming down with Coccidiosis. It is not a treatment in the dosage in medicated feed, it is a partial preventative. Medicated feed does not give your chicks immunity to Cocciciosis, it allows them to develop immunity if the bug that causes Coccidiosis is present.

First you need to know what the "medicated" is in the medicated feed. It should be on the label. Usually it is Amprolium, Amprol, some such product, but until you read the label, you really don't know. Most "medicated' feed from major brands for chicks that will be layers uses Amprolium, but there are a few out there mostly for broilers, that use other medicines. I'll assume yours is an Amprolium product, but if it is not, then realize everything I say about it may not apply. And it is possible that the "medicated" is Amprolium AND something else.

Amprolium is not an antibiotic. It does not kill anything. It inhibits the protozoa that cause coccidiosis (often called Cocci on this forum) from multiplying in the chicken's system. It does not prevent the protozoa from multiplying; it just slows that multiplication down. There are several different strains of protozoa that can cause Cocci, some more severe than others. Chickens can develop immunity to a specific strain of the protozoa, but that does not give them immunity to all protozoa that cause Cocci.

It is not a big deal for the chicken’s intestines to contain some of the protozoa that cause Cocci. The problem comes in when the number of those protozoa gets huge. The protozoa can multiply in the chicken’s intestines but also in wet manure. For them to reproduce they need some moisture. Slightly damp isn't an issue, soaking wet is. Different protozoa strains have different strengths, but for almost all cases, if you keep the brooder dry, you will not have a problem.

To develop immunity to a specific strain, that protozoa needs to be in the chicks intestines for two or three weeks. The normal sequence is that a chick has the protozoa. It poops and some of the cysts that develop the protozoa come out in the poop. If the poop is slightly damp, those cysts develop and will then develop in the chick's intestines when the chicks eat that poop. This cycle needs go on for a few weeks so all chicks are exposed and they are exposed long enough to develop immunity. A couple of important points here. You do need to watch them to see if they are getting sick. And the key is to keep the brooder dry yet allow some of the poop to stay damp. Not soaking wet, just barely damp. Wet poop can lead to serious problems.

What sometimes happens is that people keep chicks in a brooder and feed them medicated feed while they are in the brooder. Those chicks are never exposed to the Cocci protozoa that lives in the dirt in their run, so they never develop the immunity to it. Then, they are switched to non-medicated feed and put on the ground where they are for the first time exposed to the protozoa. They do not have immunity, they do not have the protection of the medicated feed, so they get sick. Feeding medicated feed while in the brooder was a complete waste.

I do not feed medicated feed. I keep the brooder dry to not allow the protozoa to breed uncontrollably. The third day that they are in the brooder, I take a scoop of dirt from the run and feed it to them so I can introduce the protozoa and they can develop the immunity they need to the strain they need to develop an immunity to. Since I keep my brooder extremely dry and the water clean the protozoa can't reproduce so every three days I give them more dirt from the run so they get more protozoa and can develop immunity. I don't lose chicks to Cocci when they hit the ground.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding medicated feed to chicks, whether the protozoa are present or not. It will not hurt them. They can still develop the immunity they need. But unless the protozoa are present, it also does no good.

If you get your chicks vaccinated for Cocci, do not feed medicated feed. It can negate the vaccinations.

This is very helpful!!! I have pine shavings in my brooder inside. Do I just throw a scoop in there or maybe put it in a dish? Start at third day?

 

[Debbie292d]

Maybe it's just coincidence then but every time I've ever had a shipped chick get pasty butt about day 2 I've used raw acv (1/2 tablespoon per 2-quart pitcher) and let them have that to drink for about 12 hours, and voila, it takes care of it.