I just got 2 buff orpintons and a barred rock. Can I put them on the lawn with a screen around them. I am worried about the eating of the grass getting stuck in the crop. I have some plastic chciken fencing left over i used to put over the metal fencing in the adults run so they would stop eating my pumpkin plants. I would put 4 sticks in the ground and wrap the plastic around it for a little outside run for the chicks in the yard.
Do you have chick sized grit? Then they would be able to eat it without you worrying if they have grit in their system.
Getting them outside is a good idea for several reasons, and the grass should be no problem if they are, mostly, tearing off their own pieces. And if they have a source of grit. I'd keep a separate bowl of either baby chick grit or the fine stuff from the bottom of a regular bag of grit available. I believe crop problems sometimes occur if they eat a lot of grass clippings. Nothing is certain, though, they will eat all sorts of stuff they shouldn't - styrofoam, plastic, etc. A lot of people say they don't need grit if they're on the ground as they will find stuff in the soil. Our soil has a lot of fine sand and a lot of limestone, and limestone is way softer than granite, so I would be afraid to NOT offer grit. If I lived in north Georgia I no doubt would not, with all that granite around.
Do you have chick sized grit? Many have posted here that sand works well for the little ones. When mine were two weeks old I put them in a run with pine shavings over a dirt base which contained sand, small pebbles, etc. They went crazy scratching around and picking up their own grit. Every so often I toss in another shovel full of dirt. Also throw in clumps of grass, which they delight in tearing to pieces and eating.
Thank You All for the replies. I do have some small sized grit that I give to my 13 week old australorps after I let them graze on the side lot. They do eat it after I put them back in the 4x3 brooder. I will go to the bottom of the bag for the finer grit and give it to the babies. It is suppose to be close to 100 degrees here friday so I will put the little ones outside for a while in half sun half shade. I let the adults run around all day in their large run and just throw adult size grit on the ground so they have it if they want it. There is not any grass left in the run so I throw some in after I cut the grass. I have a gate between two garages and let them go in a area there where there is still some grass left. The grass lasts there because I only let them in there for a short time each day. The scratching makes it disappear faster than the eating. Thanks Again.
