Baby chicks and snacks?

[stone_family3]

My chicks have the same access to the compost as the big girls do. Never lost a chick due to diet. I've also had chicks being raised by mama and they ate everything she ate without any issues.

Also I've seen several times in the thread that chickens should not eat human made food, but chicken feed is human made food. I'm sure there is plenty of science behind it, but I've talked with many who have raised chickens in an urban setting and have never fed feed. Many old timers said that chickens just ate what is found and what was thrown out after meals and they did just fine.

 

[Bellatrixed]

My chicks have the same access to the compost as the big girls do. Never lost a chick due to diet. I've also had chicks being raised by mama and they ate everything she ate without any issues.

Also I've seen several times in the thread that chickens should not eat human made food, but chicken feed is human made food. I'm sure there is plenty of science behind it, but I've talked with many who have raised chickens in an urban setting and have never fed feed. Many old timers said that chickens just ate what is found and what was thrown out after meals and they did just fine.

Well said. Chicks being raised by their mothers aren't going to eat perfectly nutritionally balanced, artificially made food.

*Humans* do not eat perfectly nutritionally balanced food, for that matter. We should all strive towards healthy eating, but just like how eating a few Cheetos in moderation isn't going to kill a person, neither is a few bites of hard boiled egg going to kill a chicken.

For as many resources as you find that say chickens should never under any circumstances eat anything other than a commercial diet, you'll find the same number of people saying they never feed grain and instead feed their chickens organically and naturally.

As long as chickens aren't being willfully neglected and fed things they clearly can make no nutritional use of (such as milk) then nobody really has the right to complain, and telling people that their chickens will get sick and/or die from something as innocent as occasional treats is just mean spirited.

 

[jctid]

it's called "backyard" chickens, not "cold but efficient mass produced chickens"

I love the way you put this into perspective for the newbies. A LOT of research goes into starting a new flock, and I have often found myself saying, "Is this ok?" "Can I do this?" "What if I have and inch too little space?" "What if I dont have the temperature exactly right?" "What if they dont like the color of their coop?" (Ok, that one is more about me, LOL) So it is nice to be reminded that this a hobby (for me) and should be enjoyable. There are many factors that have many variables. I am happy to be able to take a deep breath and tell myself it is ok to not have everything PERFECT. I am confident that if I follow the general "rules", there are many personal choices that I can make.

I have raised children without a forum, and they all turned out ok. Luckily I have found much more guidance about chickens in a very short amount of time, thanks to this forum. (maybe my chickens will be honor students too!)

Thanks again for your encouraging words.

 

[gimmie birdies]

I have homebator hatched chicks long before this site, but had not in a while, then in Jan. I had a batch going and I kept reading about water, on this site blahblah blah, and I put too much humidity in the bator. I had a small hatch... then in feb. I thought I am going to put in less humidity. had a better batch.... and then in March I had my last hatch 6 eggs, even less humidity, and they all hatched. but I do acknowledge everyone's bator situation is different.

 

[PSJ]

I should add that I give -small- amounts, like a tablespoon of yogurt between 6 chicks. It should never replace their starter food, their tummies are too small. It's like human babies, you want to make sure milk/formula is the main food source, not candy.

I knew what you meant, and I agree. Just like human babies, their main food source should not be treats. Treats should be used as just that.. treats.
I believe what she was trying to say is that you wouldn't just let your newborn baby eat candy all day. Therefore, new chicks shouldn't just eat treats.

 

[PSJ]

I think the key is all things in moderation. I know someone who raises chicks on layer mash because she does not want to have two bags of feed. Her chicks are healthy and happy, and do not seem to have any more health problems than anyone else's. She's been doing this for years, and has had hens live for 7 or 8 years.

I am in the camp with those who believe in exposing the chicks to small amounts of different kinds of foods from the start. This is what mother hens do, and since I am filling in for their mother, I do it, too. I give them a balanced, healthy main food and little bits of treats.

So last night before bed I checked the 14 2-1/2 week old chicks in my brooder, and heard the chicks peeping loudly. I thought, great, what's wrong now. Turns out, a crane fly had gotten in and was attracted to the heat lamp, and the chicks were going nuts trying to jump up and catch it. They know what they want to eat. These are meat birds, and I f wanted to have birds raised in the dark on a balanced ration designed for optimum growth, then I can just drive to the local store and pay less. I want chickens raised to enjoy their chicken-iness, and for that they need to eat more than just dry, lifeless food.

 

[gimmie birdies]

treats, are treats, not the main dish. and as long as there is no candy in the treat, (Haha!) or salt relax and don't get so up tight over what I feed my babes. oh.

 

[PSJ]

I agree that people worry too much about what is fed. As long as they are getting plenty of protein and calcium, they should be ok. Happy, healthy chickens are what matters.

 

[stirkrazy]

So what I'm getting from this is I either need to expose my baby chicks to everything, or, keep them in a protective plastic bubble? Being raised a country boy all my life I know which one ill choose. Sure, u may loose a couple in the process, but in my opinion, your doing nothing less than Mother Nature, strengthen the majority while weeding out the weak. May be a harsh way of looking at it but Mother Nature isn't always fair

 

[Bellatrixed]

So what I'm getting from this is I either need to expose my baby chicks to everything, or, keep them in a protective plastic bubble? Being raised a country boy all my life I know which one ill choose. Sure, u may loose a couple in the process, but in my opinion, your doing nothing less than Mother Nature, strengthen the majority while weeding out the weak. May be a harsh way of looking at it but Mother Nature isn't always fair

I agree completely. If chickens really get sick and/or die from eating small quantities of healthy snacks, chances are they were fragile anyway. I've known too many chickens that lived to be 6+ on a diet of nothing but kitchen scraps to be too worried. Since nearly everyone on this thread/board has basically been saying they keep a well-balanced grain available 24/7 but supplement with other foods, I don't see an issue.