chick starter/grower feed medicated or non medicated

[Billy7871]

Should I feed medicated or not? These are new chicks that will hatch on Saturday.

 

[Chooksaurus]

We fed medicated starter, but it seems that the opinions on medicated starter for chicks are akin to the opinions on medicating children. Some people do, some don't.

 

[cybercat]

Alot depends on your weather and how crowded the chicks will be. If you live in a wetter area like most of the southeast then it is a good idea. If you live in a dry area like the dessert region then you can do without. If you have alot of chicks and will not be doing litter changes weekly then it is best to use it. If a small amount of chicks with litter changes every couple of days then you do not. Hope this helps some.

 

[Billy7871]

WOW thanks. One more question! What about protein % this I got from the feed store is medicated and it is chick?grower and it is only 18% protein. I thought it was more like 24%

 

[Billy7871]

or 21%

 

[cybercat]

That is why shopping around is so important. Chick starter/grower or just chick starter depends on brand should be 20% protien not above 24%. This is where it will get confussing there is another chick starter/grower that is made for older chicks. It can be sold as crumbles or not and is ment for chicks after 6 weeks of age. It is usually lower protien but sometimes not. If you have heavy breeds like over 7lbs for a rooster or hen then keeping feed at 20% protien thru out there life is a good idea. If you have the lighter breeds then you can drop it down below that when they are laying.

Check your phone books Yellow pages look under feed store or feed mill or feed grinding. Also go to company feed web sites and do a dealer search to find your closest dealer. Some to look uo are Blue Seal, Purina Mills, Kent, AMC, Southern States and there are more just read thread here for more names.

 

[cmom]

I use medicated Starter/Grower I feed it to the birds until I get my first egg then I switch over to Layer. If I have any Starter/Grower or Grower left over when I get my first egg, I mix in the leftover feed with the Layer feed. I have never had any problems. The amprollium in the Starter helps in the chicks development in their resistance to cocci. It is sulfa based. There is only a problem eating the eggs layed by the birds that have had the medicated feed when they start to lay if you have any alergies to Sulfa.