Can my 3 wk old chicks have anything other than starter feed and grit??

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Good Morning my Chicken people!
New chick mom here: I need some clarification. My 6 black sex links were born on 04/28/21 and I wonder if they can have anything other than their starter feed and chick grit? I cant seem to get a consistent answer when I inquire. Tractor supply told me not to give them anything until all the feathers are in; but my research indicates otherwise. Yesterday I gave them some sod from the yard and there were a couple of grubs mixed in there. Is this the wrong thing to do? At first I felt confident, then, I got nervous thinking maybe the grass and or greens were no good for their digestion system. They did find the grubs and ran around like crazy showing off to the others. I dont want to do anything to compromise their development, but want them to get everything they may need and honestly prefer natural options if possible.

Thank you kindly from CT

 

[cmobley]

Yep they can have anything as long as they do have the grit. Mama hen don't give them food out of a sack and tractor supply would love you to keep them on nothing but sack feed because it lines their pockets.

 

[Cerci]

What would wild baby chicks eat in the forest? Try giving them corn on cob for treats, it's fun watching chicks dangling off the cob like weird sprouts!

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Yep they can have anything as long as they do have the grit. Mama hen don't give them food out of a sack and tractor supply would love you to keep them on nothing but sack feed because it lines their pockets.

My Instincts agree with you 100%
Thank you for your time

 

[WonkierZulu]

Short answer yes. Some people are really anal about sticking the the regiment of only starter in first few months. If with a momma hen she knows best to be honest.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I dont want to do anything to compromise their development, but want them to get everything they may need and honestly prefer natural options if possible.

What they NEED is going to depend a lot on your goals. If you are raising them for meat, there are some diets better for that. If you are raising them to show they have different dietary needs. If you want them to specialize you may need to feed them a certain way. So your goals are important.

Some of that is going to depend on your set-up and management techniques. Are they housed where you provide everything they eat or do they get to forage for part of what they eat? If you provide everything they eat you have pretty tight control. If you let them forage for much of their diet you have lost the ability to micromanage their diet. Are you raising them in a brooder or is a broody hen raising them?

If you are providing everything they eat then their chick starter, grower, or other commercial age-appropriate feed (if it is a traditional national brand) provides everything they need for a balanced diet. It's already been ground up so they do not need grit, even if it is crumbles or later pellets when they grow some more. That's a very safe way to respond, that Tractor Supply employee may have been trained to be careful how they answer though Tractor Supply employees are just like any other employees for any company. Some are better than others, some know more than others.

Many of us like to provide treats in addition to chicken feed. Many of those may require them to have grit. If you provide treats the general recommendation is that those treats should not compromise more than 10% of their total diet. Otherwise you upset the balanced diet provided by their chicken feed. How do you tell that it is 10%? You can't. A rule of thumb is what they clean up in about 15 to 20 minutes if they are hungry. Are you going to kill your chickens if you feed them more than 10% treats? No, their diets just won't be "optimum".

if you let them forage for some of their food they are in charge, you are not. What nutrition they get from foraging will depend on the quality of the forage. If they can forage in an area with lots of various grasses and weeds that are allowed to go to seed and can catch various creepy crawlies they will get a lot more than if they have a manicured back yard.

When I have a broody hen raising chicks she generally takes them to a feeder where they fill up when they wake up. Then practically all day she has them out on grass pecking away at what they find. Usually fairly late in the day she takes them back to a feeder so they can top off for the night. The "treats" they get foraging all day is a lot more than 10% of their diet and they still do fine. I am highly unlikely to raise "show birds" and win prizes this way, they won't grow big enough. But as far as I'm concerned they grow up very healthy.

For my brooder raised chicks (more like I think yours are) all I feed them is chick Starter (or later Grower) while they are in the brooder. I don't really give them any treats. They don't need them. But starting about the second or third day in the brooder I feed them some dirt from where the adults are, then repeat every three or four days. Since I have adults the chicks will get probiotics from the adults. You probably won't get that benefit. This gets grit into their system so they are ready for anything. And if there is anything there, it gets their immune system working on any flock immunities they may need. I don't raise mine in a sterile environment and expect their immune system to handle anything they encounter when they are thrust out into their environment. Your giving them some sod should accomplish all this. I'd just do it on a regular basis. And keep the brooder dry. A dry brooder is a lot more healthy than a wet brooder. And keep their water clean and fresh. That should be obvious but it's worth mentioning.

A lot of this is personal preference. A lot of people don't provide grit. Many keep them in a sterile environment until they hit the ground. Most of the time their chicks do OK. They don't NEED any of this. In my opinion it makes their immune system stronger and ties in with my goals so it is my approach.