A few questions

[Kaitie09]

I have 28 cornish x that are turning 2 weeks old tomorrow. There is one that either is a dud or is not a cornish rock. He/she is about half the size of all of the others, but eats and drinks fine, poos fine too. He is so little that he basically can walk right under the other's feet. Any thoughts on this?

Also, They are constantly wet. They must lay themselves in their water and somehow roll around. They all drink and get soaked, and then run under the heat lamp and complain that their are cold. Is there a waterer that only has holes big enough for just their beaks?

Another problem is that they have figured out how to jump on top of the feeder and get in it. Every day I go out and there are 2-3 stuck inside the feeder. I don't want to put something on top of it that would crush them if it fell, but I need something. The one was so stuck in there today that I had to tear the feeder apart to get it out.

I'm going to tractor supply today to get a bigger feeder and waterer so any help would be appreciated.

 

[Tracydr]

What kind of bedding do you have? You have to bed more deeply then with regular chicks as they eat, drink and poop a lot more. This means more bedding changes and deeper bedding to keep them healthy. If they are wet and chilled they are using their energy to stay warm and not to grow.
You may want to set the waterer up on a block, too, if you're not already, so they don't spill so much.
I like using rice hulls, they are more absorbent than pine shavings. But, they are hard to find in most parts of the country. For me, they are about the same in price so they make sense. In some places, another option can be pelleted stall bedding. Most people don't know how to use these. You need to add water to expand the pellets, don't just put them on the hard pellets. I've found the pelleted bedding extremely absorbent and used it when living in other parts of the country where wet stalls were a problem with horses.

 

[Kaitie09]

I used a whole bag of shavings in there, and they only have a 4/4 space right now. Every day I go out and fluff it to keep it from becoming hard too, and I cleaned it out on Saturday. The water is on a block, but they just hop right on up and perch on the sides. When they are 4 weeks old we are letting them out, and the food and water will be hung. I'm really just looking for a temporary fix right now.

 

[Tracydr]

Well, if they are getting soaked, the bedding isn't doing it's job. Need more bedding or different bedding. Can you find some pelleted bedding to put on top?
Like I said, if they are getting chilled, they aren't going to be putting their calories into growing. I generally change the bedding every 4 days when they are in one place, depending on how many chicks are in the brooder.

 

[Carolyn]

He is a little fellow isn't he? Possibly a runt but seems equally possible it is another breed who accidentally got mixed in with the meaties. I'd watch that he is not being roughed up by the others or deprived food. I got a couple of Cornish X in the first flock I raised; I culled them with the other roos but did not realize until later that they were the cornish (after I saw a flock of meaties).

You need to figure out this water situation because they are going to get sick from being damp. Sit the water up on something, use one with small holes so they can't climb into the water. The ones you screw on a canning jar work best for me when they are little.

I hate feeders and have not found one locally available that I actually like. The ones with chick size openings work best for young ones. I do recommend you hang or otherwise elevate the feeder. Hanging it can make it hard for them to get on top of it if you are able to limit the head room and if it swings a bit. I used the top of an ice cream bucket to make a covering for mine.

 

[anthonyjames]

put marbles in the water so they can't step in the tray. I had the same issue with getting wet. Put in marbles and no more problems

 

[Kaitie09]

Thanks for the advise everyone.

I just went out to check them and they are all dry and just lounging around. They must only get wet as I fill up their water. I put some rocks in the water it because marbles were too small, and a popcorn bucket fit perfectly over the feeder. The little guy does not get bullied, so no problems there. I'll watch him and if he turns out to be another breed, he'll be moved into the bigger flock when the others get butchered.