junebuggena
Crowing
Is it terrible that I am terrified they won't be warm enough? I guess I need to think of them as outside animals than "baby chicks". They are pretty much feathered out, they tried to fly out of their indoor habitat yesterday, one was semi successful.
To put it into perspective. This winter I had a group of 4 chicks that were feathered out and in desperate need of more flapping room. The highs were in the mid 50s, lows were expected to be in the high 30s, so out they went. The next night, a freak cold snap hit. Daytime highs were in the low 30s and night temps dropped down into the teens. Record cold for around here. The chicks were fine and more than happy to run around on the frozen ground.
. But for treats, I always dig dirt/grass clumps from the yard where my older birds run..this gives the babies grit and a fun toys while slowly introducing them to the bacterias and whatnot in the ground. My daughter raises rabbits and guinea pigs so she always has those little bags of good hay. I use that to give the babies handfuls but also give them hay from the horses square bales too. a meal worm farm is also a great thing to have. I also get feeder fish for the ducks and ducklings, but sometimes Ill put the tiniest in a very small bowl (like a quarter inch of water to keep the fish sort of moving but not so much that it could put babies in danger) and they have a blast first trying to figure out what it is , then watching them get brave enough for a peck and then of course the game of keep away that follows when someone finally grabs one..I also chop lettuces, bell peppers and cucumbers up very fine and give them that with carrot shavings. I am pretty sure my critters eat better than I do....
