Cornmeal grit?

[Malpal55]

Hello! I just adopted 5 chicks and one has pasty butt. Only the one has it so far and I've had the chicks about 5 hours. I read that they may need additional grit with there food to aid digestion. I did some research and repeatedly saw cornmeal being fed to chicks in place of store bought grit. Is this doable? I have cornmeal on hand and won't make it to the store tonight, should I give them cornmeal? Also should I give a probiotic to them? I've had chicks in the past and I know that once they start to get sick they go downhill fast and I want to prevent any sickness the best I can. Thank you!!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Grit should be granite, ideally... I don't see how cornmeal can be a substitute. Do you have gravel around your yard anywhere? You can sift through for the tiniest pieces to serve as grit. (Chick grit is on the far left, for size comparison with pullet and hen grit).



That said, if they are only eating starter feed they shouldn't NEED grit just yet.

 

[aart]

I would not give them cornmeal.
They don't really need grit if you are not feeding anything other than chick starter mash or crumble.

How old are the chicks?
What does your brooder set up look like?
Too hot or too cold can cause pasty butt.
Just keep it cleaned off and make sure they have fresh room temp water.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I am not an expert, but I would think that if you feed them cornmeal, they would then definitely need grit, which is crushed granite, to help them digest the corn properly. If you don't have grit, don't feed anything but the chick starter. Good luck and enjoy your babies!

 

[Malpal55]

Grit should be granite, ideally... I don't see how cornmeal can be a substitute. Do you have gravel around your yard anywhere? You can sift through for the tiniest pieces to serve as grit. (Chick grit is on the far left, for size comparison with pullet and hen grit).

View attachment 2057207

That said, if they are only eating starter feed they shouldn't NEED grit just yet.

Thank you for the reply! I've decided I will not give them grit

 

[Malpal55]

I would not give them cornmeal.
They don't really need grit if you are not feeding anything other than chick starter mash or crumble.

How old are the chicks?
What does your brooder set up look like?
Too hot or too cold can cause pasty butt.
Just keep it cleaned off and make sure they have fresh room temp water.

Thanks for the reply! They are between 1 and 2 weeks old. The brooder has a heat lamp in one corner and I put the little box they came in in the other corner which provides shade. When I stick my hand behind it, it is definitely colder than the rest of the brooder. They also have a feeder and a very shallow dish with rubber band separaters. The bedding is paper towel with pine shavings on top. They seem very content and go through bouts of running around and exploring and then cuddling up and napping. Again only one chick has pasty butt. Perhaps it's stress from a long day of travel.

 

[aart]

Again only one chick has pasty butt. Perhaps it's stress from a long day of travel.

Could very well be ...if it doesn't resolve in a day or so, might need to look into it further.

 

[Malpal55]

Update: the chick with pasty bum is doing so much better! I put some vaseline on her vent which has helped a lot. Her stools are also solid now. Thank you all so much for the help!!!