3 month old chicks eating calcium grit?

[CHlCKEN]

They have access to regular grit. They are also always outside, so they can scratch in the dirt and eat little pebbles that way.

I recommend offering store bought grit anyway, because they might not always be able to find enough grit. However, you can do as you want, but offering grit might help them stop eating the oyster shell.

 

[HappyClucker7]

I recommend offering store bought grit anyway, because they might not always be able to find enough grit. However, you can do as you want, but offering grit might help them stop eating the oyster shell.

They already have store bought grit.

 

[NatJ]

They have access to regular grit. They are also always outside, so they can scratch in the dirt and eat little pebbles that way.

Then I would just assume it's one of those weird things chickens do, and will probably not hurt them.

The chick starter "should" have enough calcium for them, but every now and then some individual chickens need a different amount than what is in the bag, or a feed company messes up the ingredients for a batch (that is really rare, but not quite impossible).

Sometimes chickens pick at things without actually eating them (maybe looking through to see if anything good is mixed in), and sometimes they actually eat it--either way, they are probably fine.

 

[HappyClucker7]

Then I would just assume it's one of those weird things chickens do, and will probably not hurt them.

The chick starter "should" have enough calcium for them, but every now and then some individual chickens need a different amount than what is in the bag, or a feed company messes up the ingredients for a batch (that is really rare, but not quite impossible).

Sometimes chickens pick at things without actually eating them (maybe looking through to see if anything good is mixed in), and sometimes they actually eat it--either way, they are probably fine.

Okay, good to know. Thank you!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Didn't think it was that soluble....should last in there awhile.

OK so it isn't mush immediately but it happens pretty quick. That is because oyster shell, like an egg shell is primarily calcium carbonate (CaCO3).
The secret is the acidity in the proventriculus (true stomach) and the gizzard (mechanical stomach). The pH in that section of the digestive tract is about 1.5-2.5. That is pretty acidic compared to vinegar. 5% vinegar is about 2.5 pH. Acetic acid will dissolve any form of calcium carbonate.
That acid is acting on the oyster shell before it reaches the gizzard. The grinding action of the gizzard will quickly finish the job. Grit on the other hand is not made up of calcium carbonate and will survive that acidic environment and the constant grinding much longer but it too will eventually wear away and why it needs to be replenished regularly.
https://www.imaginationstationtoledo.org/educator/activities/how-to-make-a-naked-egg
ETA
I would like to add that the large particle size of oyster shell is why it is much more effective at reaching the bloodstream in a more timely manner than calcium in feed. Crushed oyster shell is made up of a variety of sizes but in general much of it remains in the upper portion of the digestive tract longer than the small particle contained in feed. That puts it in contact with the calcium absorption sites in the small intestine at night (a time when the majority of eggs will be in the uterus (shell gland).