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The disappearance of the pasty vent doesn't necessarily mean that the bird is better. Pasty vent is an outward manifestation of an inward problem, and inward problems should always be treated (naturally if possible, chemically if absolutely necessary and the true cause is very likely known).
With pasty vent, you know there's at least a bacterial imbalance and probiotics should be given. There is no exception to that.
And I'm not sure I understand your 'ground up feed" question - it does come that way. And chick starter is formulated for the needs of a scientifically average chick. That doesn't mean that in storage the feed is kept well, or that the breeding pair gave enough to that chick, or that the individual chick (or its line) is able to absorb nutrition, or that the mill didn't mess up.
The disappearance of the pasty vent doesn't necessarily mean that the bird is better. Pasty vent is an outward manifestation of an inward problem, and inward problems should always be treated (naturally if possible, chemically if absolutely necessary and the true cause is very likely known).
With pasty vent, you know there's at least a bacterial imbalance and probiotics should be given. There is no exception to that.
And I'm not sure I understand your 'ground up feed" question - it does come that way. And chick starter is formulated for the needs of a scientifically average chick. That doesn't mean that in storage the feed is kept well, or that the breeding pair gave enough to that chick, or that the individual chick (or its line) is able to absorb nutrition, or that the mill didn't mess up.