Chick enrichment ideas?

[cheitz20]

I have 6 young chicks (ages ranging from a few days old to about 1 week) and this is my first flock. I noticed that in the brooder, they’re all digging around the edge almost like they’re trying to escape (I know that this is just their instinct to look for bugs, etc.) What can I give them at this age to keep them from getting bored? I have a mirror and a few stuffed animals in their brooder which they seem interested in, but they still seem bored and obsessive about digging and pecking the sides of the brooder.

 

[TwoCrows]

I like to use a cereal or shoe box cut down and add chick starter, Alfalfa leaves, and a sprinkling of parakeet grit, it entertains them for hours!

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

Thanks for your response! Will grass be ok for them at this age? We don’t have pesticides or anything in our grass but I just don’t want to expose them to anything harmful.

You're welcome! Exposing them to bacteria is actually the point. By making them eat the bacteria and other potentially harmful germs in the grass, they build their immunity up. If they do not have this option, then they have a higher risk of being sick when they get integrated outside. I take my chicks outside for the first time when they are only a few days old, and let them do what they want for about a minute, and then take them back inside. I do this every day if I can, and make them stay outside for longer periods of time. It helps a lot.

 

[RoyalChick]

I have 6 young chicks (ages ranging from a few days old to about 1 week) and this is my first flock. I noticed that in the brooder, they’re all digging around the edge almost like they’re trying to escape (I know that this is just their instinct to look for bugs, etc.) What can I give them at this age to keep them from getting bored? I have a mirror and a few stuffed animals in their brooder which they seem interested in, but they still seem bored and obsessive about digging and pecking the sides of the brooder.

They love to jump up on things and pretend to fly.
I give mine sticks and small branches supported on blocks.
They also love a bowl of sand or grit to ‘bathe’ in.
Anything like an obstacle course.

Here are some of mine from roughly the same age just showing off their climbing abilities. The thing holding up the branches is their heat plate.

 

[Perris]

Thanks for your response! Will grass be ok for them at this age? We don’t have pesticides or anything in our grass but I just don’t want to expose them to anything harmful.

as others have said, exposure to a clump of your garden soil, with the plants and microbiota growing in and on it will prime their immune systems for the challenges they'll face when they go out (things like coccidia, which are endemic and unavoidable). Pop it in the brooder and it'll also supply some fresh nutrients, grit (unless your soil's just clay) and satisfy their instincts to dig, scratch, and explore their environment. Like toddlers, they do a fair bit of this by taste.

 

[Farmgirl283420]

I have 6 young chicks (ages ranging from a few days old to about 1 week) and this is my first flock. I noticed that in the brooder, they’re all digging around the edge almost like they’re trying to escape (I know that this is just their instinct to look for bugs, etc.) What can I give them at this age to keep them from getting bored? I have a mirror and a few stuffed animals in their brooder which they seem interested in, but they still seem bored and obsessive about digging and pecking the sides of the brooder.

I wanted my chicks to be entertained too! I found they will go crazy if you sprinkle a little food where they are digging or little blocks for them to sit on. I always take my chicks out to play on a play mat so they can run around and sit on my lap.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'd also recommend a clump of grass or weeds like dandelion, roots and soil and all, to give them something to tear up and to deliberately expose them to a low dose of outside bacteria and pathogens. Make sure they have access to grit, or if you have naturally rocky/sandy soil, they'll get it from eating it out of the soil in the clump.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

For mine i have a mirror, small roosting bars, if i have sticks ill put some in there for them to perch on.

I also have a xylophone that they peck at.

Scatter food in the brooder they will scratch around for it. Mine kick the food out by themselves.

 

[cheitz20]

Take the plushies out and give them objects that are safer for them to explore. Chicks love climbing on sticks, I always provide my chicks with sticks in the brooder. Bantams like flying better than large fowl, so they will be more interested in the sticks. Giving them grass from outside is a good option as well. If they are getting bored and you have extra bottles to spare, then you can get an empty water bottle and fill it with chicken feed or a small, healthy treat, and then poke holes in the bottle. Give the bottle to the chicks and they have something to figure out.

Thanks for your response! Will grass be ok for them at this age? We don’t have pesticides or anything in our grass but I just don’t want to expose them to anything harmful.

 

[Debbie292d]

Thanks for your response! Will grass be ok for them at this age? We don’t have pesticides or anything in our grass but I just don’t want to expose them to anything harmful.

If they were with momma, sure, they're getting grass at a few days old, but when we're raising them, the conditions are different. Most recommend waiting until they are at least two weeks old as by then they are stronger and their tummies can handle a bit more. I'd hold off another week, but make sure you provide them grit too, unless you were taking them outside, then just take them by where some dirt is.