A few questions about chicks

[bluemini]

I need help !

1.I know theres a debate on medicated/non feed and therefor im having a hard time deciding,could I do half and half ? Or something like that .
2.Even when in the house,how long will they need a heat lamp on them ?
3.Is pine bedding okay ?
4.Anything special they need besides heat,food,water,bedding and brooder ?


Also if I post pics of the building they are going to be in can I get help on how to fix it up and all that ?


Thanx

 

[blueberrychickens]

1. If you did half & half, they would still be getting medicated feed, so you might as well just go w/ straight medicated or straight unmedicated. Your choice
2. Even in the house, they need 95 degrees the first week, 90 degrees the 2nd week & so on.
3. Yes, pine is fine, cedar is not fine! Some people put paper towels the 1st few days so the chicks don't eat the bedding, newspaper is bad since it is slippery & can cause splayed legs
4. Nothing special they need persay, but I did add in a perch & a cardboard box to my brooder, the chicks enjoyed hanging out on their perch after about week 2 & they would sleep on top of the box & play inside it. My brooder also had a wire top so they couldn't escape once they figured out they could "fly"
Good luck w/ your babies!
Yes I'm sure other BYC'ers will chime in if you post pics of your set up. They are great that way!

 

[bluemini]

Thanks for your reply ! I will try and post pictures in a day or two .

1. If you did half & half, they would still be getting medicated feed, so you might as well just go w/ straight medicated or straight unmedicated. Your choice
2. Even in the house, they need 95 degrees the first week, 90 degrees the 2nd week & so on.
3. Yes, pine is fine, cedar is not fine! Some people put paper towels the 1st few days so the chicks don't eat the bedding, newspaper is bad since it is slippery & can cause splayed legs
4. Nothing special they need persay, but I did add in a perch & a cardboard box to my brooder, the chicks enjoyed hanging out on their perch after about week 2 & they would sleep on top of the box & play inside it. My brooder also had a wire top so they couldn't escape once they figured out they could "fly"
Good luck w/ your babies!
Yes I'm sure other BYC'ers will chime in if you post pics of your set up. They are great that way!

 

[Ridgerunner]

1.I know theres a debate on medicated/non feed and therefor im having a hard time deciding,could I do half and half ? Or something like that .

If you are going to do it, use it the way it is supposed to be used. The medication in there is in a specific dosage to work. If you cut it by half, it will not work the way it should. Feeding medicated feed will not hurt the chicks. It really won't. If the protozoa that causes Coccidiosis is not present, it won't do any good, but in any case it will not hurt anything. However, there is some benefit to it if all it does is make you feel better.

2.Even when in the house,how long will they need a heat lamp on them ?

Bluemini gave you the standard safe textbook answer. If you follow that, you should not have any problems. However, I'll add to it. Your chicks will tell you if they are too hot or too cold. If they stay around the edges of the brooder as far away from the heat source as they can get, it is too hot. If they crowd under the heat source and especially if they give that plaintive distress peeping, they are too cold. If you ever hear their distress peep, you'll recognize it. This does not mean at night when they are sleeping. They like to sleep in a pile for the comfort and companionship, not because they are cold.

What I really recommend is to have the brooder big enough and well enough ventilated that you keep one area warm but let the rest cool off as it will. They will find their own comfort zone and you don't have to worry about it being too hot or too cold. Too much heat is more of a danger than too much cold, by the way.

I keep my 3' x 5' brooder in the coop and only heat one area. The rest cools down to ambient, usually a whole lot cooler than the recommended temperatures, often in the 50's. Mine normally spend most of their time away from the heated area.

3.Is pine bedding okay ?

Pine bedding is fine.

4.Anything special they need besides heat,food,water,bedding and brooder ?

A draft guard. They need to niot have breezes blowing directly on them. Also, predator protection.

 

[ChickenCrazy4ever]

My chicks at the bedding anyways even though we started them on old towels.

 

[cafarmgirl]

I need help !

1.I know theres a debate on medicated/non feed and therefor im having a hard time deciding,could I do half and half ? Or something like that .
2.Even when in the house,how long will they need a heat lamp on them ?
3.Is pine bedding okay ?
4.Anything special they need besides heat,food,water,bedding and brooder ?


Also if I post pics of the building they are going to be in can I get help on how to fix it up and all that ?


Thanx

I would not do half and half with the medicated/non medicated feed, it would serve no purpose. It is your choice to go medicated or not, just keep in mind that if your chicks contract coccidiosis it is very hard on them, it can be very hard to treat, you may loose some or all of them. It usually moves pretty quickly so if you choose unmedicated feed you would need to be aware of the signs and treat them immediately should they contract it. Medicated feed simply contains a coccidiostat to help protect them while they build their own immunity.