chicks after hatching....problem

[epmchickens]

I dry hatch and candle to make sure they are not losing too much liquid. I put in a bit more water after they have pipped. when they hatch they come out clean.

I def think I'll give dry hatchong a go. Thank you!

 

[epmchickens]

Sounds like you're on your way to having some happy chooks, lol. Since they're free ranging they will be supplementing with all sorts of good stuff. No matter what you feed a caged chook, in my experience, it won't compare to a free ranged one. 

For multivitamin and mineral supplementation I would mix a pinch of kelp per bird per day into their feed. I get the granulated or powdered stuff they sell at produce stores for horses/cattle etc, it's good for all livestock. In the wild various animals are known to make pilgrimages to the sea to obtain kelp. It's great for human health too. One of the main issues with commercial feed is that it's cooked, and most vitamins and minerals and oils do not come through cooking in anywhere near the state they went in. 

Anyway, best wishes. I plan to make a chook garden in future too, rather than just having them raid the veggie garden, lol.

Haha. That's exactly how I ended up with my garden going to the birds. They eat it anyway so I just made a point of planting stuff for them lol. Go figurr this is the first year they've left it alone! I'll make a point of finding kelp and adding it to their feed. I'm sure they'll go nuts over it, thank you so much.