Good treats for baby chicks?

[berkeleyjack]

My two week old girls also go crazy for plain oatmeal.
I wouldn't suggest the 1-minute or flavored kinds, but they really like plain old Quaker rolled oats.
I give them a small handful in the morning when I go out to check on them or whenever I'm trying to socialize them.

 

[Elissa]

Eggs are fine, the cooked version bears no resemblance to the raw in the nest box version. Just don't give them the shells.

You can give oyster shells (crushed, purchases) instead of egg shells for calcium.. there are still trace bits of egs on chicken egg shells, I am sure, so for this, I won't give shells back to them. Some may have good results, I am a total newbie, so I don't want to risk it right now with my babies.

Well, don't give them the shells until they're of age to lay eggs, as the calcium would not be good for them until then...after they start to lay, by all means give them shells, just make sure they're crumbled up small so they don't look like eggs or pieces of eggs!

 

[Tigertrea]

Just found this thread....thought I'd give it a bump.

I started giving my chicks treats at about 1 week. I started with just a little finely cut grass. Added broad leaf plantain a few days latter. Every other day on my afternoon foraging trip for them I try to find something new for them in the yard. I have also given tomato, they loved it. Freeze dried meal worms drives them insane!

I have 11 chicks, each morning and night I give them about 1/2 cup greens with a couple dozen freeze dried meal worms. I always put the wormies in the bottom of the ice-cream lid I use, then pile the greens on top. They spread the greens out, devour the worms then scratch around for a few hours at the greens until they have them all done.

I have head no not give them "too much". I hope that I am not doing so. They still eat a LOT of their crumbles!

 

[BullardBarnyard]

So they need grit forever? So, if I were to mix a bag of grit with a bag of layer-feed(well, when they start laying), would that work?...
We feed ours Happy Hen Sunflower stuff. Is that good for them at a young age?...

Confusion

 

[RonC]

I would offer the grit in a seperate container or just throw it in the run and let them forage for it. They love scratching and looking for stuff anyways.

 

[Ira B]

Vegans won't like this but my chicks like nothing better for a treat than crumbled up little bits of cooked hamburger.
The only down side is that they act disappointed now if I give them anything else and squabbles usually break out over the last piece.

 

[Nsampsel]

Mine like weeds & grass pulled up from the bank or along the fence out back, almost any kitchen scraps/leftovers we have (especially Ramen noodles, guess they look like worms) and frozen mixed veggies (thawed in warm water 1st). They also go nuts over mealworms & a game of "chicken football" always erupts.

 

[Vickilynn45]

I just read on here about the oatmeal, so I gave them some and they went absolutely nuts over it. I've never had them get excited like that- grit was about the only thing that even came sort of close to getting them so worked up lol! So far they don't really care about grass clippings, or mashed hard boiled egg, but this did it.

 

[CrazyChikn Lady]

Be careful I read citrus isn't good for chickens and avocados are poisonous. I also read tomatoe leaves aren't good for them but my chickens stripped my plants clean last fall and were fine.

 

[AnimalAddict]

What if I have chicks (about 3 wks) that won't take treats? Should I keep trying? Anything special that might tempt them to take something from me?