5 week ol chicks doing the dust bath?

[TheCoolieCoop]

My first time raising babies. Ive been doing a lot of reading from here, so far so good cept my chicks seems to be doing the dust thing inside their cage we made them..can I make one for them or just wait till they are outside(coop) for good which will be about another week or 2..I already have a grown hen and a rooster and they do the dusting everyday...

and do chickens like wading pools? especially in the summer

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Hi there I didn't provide a dirt bath for my chicks the first time I raised them. They took their baths in the bedding and once they moved outside they knew just what to do and where to do it. This time around I provided a dirt bathing area and they learned how to use it within a week! So, I think you should. Note that their brooder will get messy so if you don't want this than just wait till they move outside.

Good luck with them

 

[red horse ranch]

My first time raising babies. Ive been doing a lot of reading from here, so far so good cept my chicks seems to be doing the dust thing inside their cage we made them..can I make one for them or just wait till they are outside(coop) for good which will be about another week or 2..I already have a grown hen and a rooster and they do the dusting everyday...

and do chickens like wading pools? especially in the summer

I keep my babies in the house for the first 2 weeks and I don't want the mess. They will try to dust bathe in the spilled feed. But as soon as they are moved out to the big brooder they get a shallow pan of sand to dust bathe in. It's also a source of grit for them.
A wading pool is not a good idea for chicks but some of my hens love to get under the sprinkler in the yard on hot days.

 

[Tappy4me]

We put a litter box full of dirt in the brooder with our guys this week. They've been loving it!

 

[newmarch2014]

At 2 weeks I put a dog dish of sand in with mine. They LOVE it! They all put it to use every day since.

 

[TheCoolieCoop]

Thanks all ! think I will wait till then...they are inside with me for now..no more light bulb..we are growing like weeds!

 

[tishabear]

I keep my babies in the house for the first 2 weeks and I don't want the mess. They will try to dust bathe in the spilled feed. But as soon as they are moved out to the big brooder they get a shallow pan of sand to dust bathe in. It's also a source of grit for them.
A wading pool is not a good idea for chicks but some of my hens love to get under the sprinkler in the yard on hot days.e

Noob here, too. What kind of sand do you use? I only have playground sand and the kind of sand you put under pavers. Is one of those good, or do I need to have a finer sand?

 

[red horse ranch]

Noob here, too. What kind of sand do you use? I only have playground sand and the kind of sand you put under pavers. Is one of those good, or do I need to have a finer sand?

We bring in waste sand for the corrals and I just scoop up some clean sand to use for the chicks. It has some really small gravel in it too. But any kind of sand will do.

 

[S1ilkieGirl99]

the idea of dust bathing it to clean the chickens and reduce the number of parasites. chicks shouldn't have as many natural parasites as adukts - therefore they don't really need a dust bath.my chicks just 'roll' around in the wood shavings

 

[newmarch2014]

@tishabear the playground sand has been sanitized with chemicals and since they eat it also it is not recommended for the sand but any other sand is fine. I agree that one reason for the dust baths is the parasite control but I think that getting in new feathers itches and they like the sand for the abrasiveness to itch against, mine seem to really use the sand when they are losing large amounts of down.