Chick starter recipe

[Kimberly4403]

Once you buy the cod liver oil, read the label to see how many IU (International units) of vitamin A it contains per teaspoon.  Each brand is a little different.
If you plan on adding it daily, you need to know how much feed you are going to feed each day.  You want it to contain 3000-4000 IU per lb.  That's a perfect supplementation rate.
I mix my dry feed up to 3 days ahead of time and add the cod liver oil when I make it.  I keep it in a sealed plastic container and I don't think it's going to degrade much in just a few days.  I mix the same amount of feed each time and I know it weighs 14 lbs, so I know how much cod liver oil to add.  It takes a little trial and error but you'll get the hang of it.

Cod liver oil says 750mcg (equivalent to 2500IU) of Vitamin A per 4ml dose..

So a 5ml dose would equal roughly 3125IU of vitamin A per 500g of grain mix is that calculation correct?

1lb = approx 500g
So it equals around 1ml per 100g of feed

How much feed would 3 (approx 1 week old) chicks go through in a day? Id rather adjust the dose according to how much im feeding them on the day for example if i fill there bowl with 250g of grain mix i only put 2.5ml cod liver oil etc into it.. If i find they eat more or less ill just adjust accordingly..

 

[ShanandGem]

Cod liver oil says 750mcg (equivalent to 2500IU) of Vitamin A per 4ml dose..

So a 5ml dose would equal roughly 3125IU of vitamin A per 500g of grain mix is that calculation correct?

1lb = approx 500g
So it equals around 1ml per 100g of feed

How much feed would 3 (approx 1 week old) chicks go through in a day? Id rather adjust the dose according to how much im feeding them on the day for example if i fill there bowl with 250g of grain mix i only put 2.5ml cod liver oil etc into it.. If i find they eat more or less ill just adjust accordingly..

Young chicks will waste far more food than they actually eat. You'll get a handle on how much feed you're using pretty quickly.

 

[Kimberly4403]

In the hot weather do you find it goes rancid? Our hot weather can get up in the high 30C early 40C..im worried if i add the CLO to the grains then leave it out for 24hrs in the coop especially in the summer it will prove toxic to my birds?

 

[Kimberly4403]

Once you buy the cod liver oil, read the label to see how many IU (International units) of vitamin A it contains per teaspoon.  Each brand is a little different.
If you plan on adding it daily, you need to know how much feed you are going to feed each day.  You want it to contain 3000-4000 IU per lb.  That's a perfect supplementation rate.
I mix my dry feed up to 3 days ahead of time and add the cod liver oil when I make it.  I keep it in a sealed plastic container and I don't think it's going to degrade much in just a few days.  I mix the same amount of feed each time and I know it weighs 14 lbs, so I know how much cod liver oil to add.  It takes a little trial and error but you'll get the hang of it.

url="/t/1120044/chick-starter-recipe#post_17268466"]

In the hot weather do you find it goes rancid? Our hot weather can get up in the high 30C early 40C..im worried if i add the CLO to the grains then leave it out for 24hrs in the coop especially in the summer it will prove toxic to my birds?

 

[Kimberly4403]

Do the flax and sesame seeds need to be ground up?

 

[ShanandGem]

We get the same temperatures here in short stretches. I wouldn't go longer than 3 days, but I think that's pretty safe.
I don't grind the sesame and flax except for brand new babies. By the time I have pulsed it in the blender a few times for the really little one it's just a coarse powder.

 

[Kimberly4403]

We get the same temperatures here in short stretches.  I wouldn't go longer than 3 days, but I think that's pretty safe.
I don't grind the sesame and flax except for brand new babies.  By the time I have pulsed it in the blender a few times for the really little one it's just a coarse powder.

I think our babies will be minmum 3 days old but most probably 1 week old.. So should i grind the flax and sesame?

Will the oats im finding they go into a powder very easy im probably over blending them?

 

[ShanandGem]

I think our babies will be minmum 3 days old but most probably 1 week old.. So should i grind the flax and sesame?

Will the oats im finding they go into a powder very easy im probably over blending them?

Possibly. I use whole oats so it takes a bit of work to get them ground up. Even a small chick should be able to swallow a sesame seed.

 

[Kimberly4403]

Possibly.  I use whole oats so it takes a bit of work to get them ground up.  Even a small chick should be able to swallow a sesame seed.

As long as i provide grit and some access to sod or outside time when weather is warm..ill grind the flax but ill leave the sesame seeds and see how they go with them if there leaving them but eating around them ill grind them up.

 

[Kimberly4403]

I made up a half batch following the original recipe method in the website link at the start of this thread.I only made a half batch as the breeder im getting my chicks from is givinv me some of there current food so i can slowly transition over to my mix over next couple of weeks.. I will add cod liver oil fresh to that days seed im 99% sure my calculations are correct in getting 3000-4000IU of vit A per pound of food equals 5mls per 1 pound or 500g. So if i serve up 200g ill just put 2mls of oil etc and if they eat all of that ill add another 100g with 1ml cod liver oil etc. Picking up my 3 Wyandotte babies tomorrow! Next time i purchase ingredients ill keep track of price and weight so i can price up how much this recipe costs me compaired to a standard chick starter and an organic mix