Can someone please post some good baby chick medicated brands?

[Michaelshady]

I know that for baby chicks, medicated are the good way, but i don't know any good ones! Please post below some good, cheap, and medicated brands that i could get at Home depot. tractor supply, or just local feed shops!

 

[BooBear]

I use Purina Medicated Chick Start for the first 8 weeks. Comes in a 50lb red bag.
Then I switch them over to Purina's Flock Raiser that comes in a 50lb green bag.

Tractor Supply carries these.

 

[Michaelshady]

How much does it cost? And where did you get it from?

 

[kari_dawn]

I think it is going to vary in price and availablity depending on your area...and which store you go to. My feed store offers it for eight bucks a bag, but down the street, the other feed store offers it at 12 bucks a bag.

 

[kari_dawn]

I believe all medicated starters use the same medicated ingredient...and offer about the same nutritional value

 

[Michaelshady]

Well, i go to a local feed store, i'm not sure if mine has it, but thanks alot anyway! That seems somewhat close to my budget so i'm sure i'll use that brand! Um, did your chicks seem like they liked it?

 

[kari_dawn]

my chicks are fuzzy butt PIGS! they will eat anything I give them!

 

[Michaelshady]

Lol, whenever they hatch, you just keep them in the incubator for like 48 hours then bring them to a brooder? and add some food and water (not a enough water for them to drown) right?

 

[partsRheavy]

Purina Start 'n' Grow medicated comes in a burgundy-red 25- or 50-lb bag. Check at the different feed 'n' seed stores in your area and read the tags at the bottom of the bag. You want to give the little ones at least 18% protein but not layer pellets (too much calcium hurts little kidneys).

The medication is a coccidiostat.

I'm no expert but opted to go the non-medicated route with the chickies and so I use the non-medicated Start 'n' Grow that comes in the yellow bag. If they were a large flock I'd do medicated but not with just a few backyard chickens.

It's up to you to decide if going "natural" means something to you or not. In my case, I preferred to try "natural."

I prefer to let them become immune to disease naturally. They will free range when they grow up.

The following things were to boost their immunity:

1. Indoor rearing on straw in a baby brooder or cardboard box for the first couple weeks. This helped keep 'em warm and out of drafts also.

2. Mix a tiny amount of livestock vitamin-electrolyte into their water especially when stresses like box changes happen. Just a tiny pinch to a gallon of water. I checked the label and this doesn't have antibiotics or hormones but DOES have more vitamins than Pedialyte.

3. Yogurt time!! Once or twice a day, they get some plain Greek yogurt to give beneficial bacteria to their tummies. When they were little I gave it to them on my fingers but now they peck pretty hard so they get it in a dish.

4. Pine shaving litter.

If they start acting sick I will switch to medicated feed but knock on wood I haven't lost any. I'm more worried about predators than disease.

These were born on September 13 and are big enough now to give the ol' stink-eye to the camera...