alittletoofar
Chirping
Hello! I have 4 chicks that were hatched on 9/26 and I brought them home on 9/27. Two Sexlinks and two Wyandottes. Sorry, it's a long post! These are my first chicks so I thought I should tell you everything and hopefully, you can tell me if there is anything I'm doing wrong. I've also added a few pictures of the past two weeks.
I first had them in a large dog crate and then decided it was getting too cramped so I built them a box that is 5' x 2.5' x 2'. They are in my living room and have had a heat lamp since day one. I did switch to a lower wattage lamp, after the first week.
They are eating Helen's Best chick starter mash. I have not given them grit. They have also had sav-a-chick electrolyte & probiotic in their water the whole time. The packets made a gallon and it has taken them this long to finish the gallon. They make such a mess that I only partially fill the water and clean it daily. I dump out the remaining water every day so I know they have never been without.
They seem to be doing well. They are very active and have grown a lot. They are getting their tails and seem to grow new feathers overnight. There is one sexlink that has always been way smaller. She still doesn't have much of a tail and was also the only one to get pasty butt. That only happened once and I was able to clean her up and she eats and drinks fine. She is growing, but is still much smaller.
Now for the questions.
Eventually, they will be in the outside coop and will have free range of the yard during the day. Should I be giving them grit? If so, when?
I gave them a stick to roost on. I was going to mount so it's off the ground. Is it too soon? How high should I start?
Is it bad that they have been on sav-a-chick for 2 weeks? I still have 2 packets. Should I stop using it?
When can I switch them to the nipple water container? I think that will be far less messy! I also got them the bucket feeder where they have to insert their head to get food. How old do they need to be to switch over to that?
I want them to be friendly and come to me when I call them so I regularly talk to them, pet them, hold them, etc. One of the whyandottes loves me and the other one tolerates me pretty well. The sexlinks seem to be getting more afraid of everything. They are more nervous now that when I first got them. They get very agitated whenever there is movement around their box, even if it is just me giving them food or water. Once I sit there and talk to them, they will calm down. Am I loving them too much or not enough? Any advice on how to make them less afraid?
My cat is obsessed with watching them, but is very calm about it. I have seem them eat, drink, and sleep while he is watching. He has even been nose to nose with the most friendly chick, when I was holding her. She didn't seemed bothered and he remained calm and just smelled her. I do wonder if his presence could be what is making them get more nervous. Has anyone else had experience with cats around chicks?
I also have dogs. They have seen each other through the dog grate door, but can no longer see each other since I built the bigger box. Could that be the problem? Do the chicks like to be able to see out? So far, they have only been out of their pen with my GSD. He is too old and mellow to even care and none of the chicks seemed to be afraid of him. They all walked right by him like he was just a big rock. Ideally, the chickens will not be afraid of the dogs because they need to share the yard. I know this will be a slow process and I will be very careful. Any tips on this would be great!
Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! Especially, if I'm doing something wrong.
I first had them in a large dog crate and then decided it was getting too cramped so I built them a box that is 5' x 2.5' x 2'. They are in my living room and have had a heat lamp since day one. I did switch to a lower wattage lamp, after the first week.
They are eating Helen's Best chick starter mash. I have not given them grit. They have also had sav-a-chick electrolyte & probiotic in their water the whole time. The packets made a gallon and it has taken them this long to finish the gallon. They make such a mess that I only partially fill the water and clean it daily. I dump out the remaining water every day so I know they have never been without.
They seem to be doing well. They are very active and have grown a lot. They are getting their tails and seem to grow new feathers overnight. There is one sexlink that has always been way smaller. She still doesn't have much of a tail and was also the only one to get pasty butt. That only happened once and I was able to clean her up and she eats and drinks fine. She is growing, but is still much smaller.
Now for the questions.
Eventually, they will be in the outside coop and will have free range of the yard during the day. Should I be giving them grit? If so, when?
I gave them a stick to roost on. I was going to mount so it's off the ground. Is it too soon? How high should I start?
Is it bad that they have been on sav-a-chick for 2 weeks? I still have 2 packets. Should I stop using it?
When can I switch them to the nipple water container? I think that will be far less messy! I also got them the bucket feeder where they have to insert their head to get food. How old do they need to be to switch over to that?
I want them to be friendly and come to me when I call them so I regularly talk to them, pet them, hold them, etc. One of the whyandottes loves me and the other one tolerates me pretty well. The sexlinks seem to be getting more afraid of everything. They are more nervous now that when I first got them. They get very agitated whenever there is movement around their box, even if it is just me giving them food or water. Once I sit there and talk to them, they will calm down. Am I loving them too much or not enough? Any advice on how to make them less afraid?
My cat is obsessed with watching them, but is very calm about it. I have seem them eat, drink, and sleep while he is watching. He has even been nose to nose with the most friendly chick, when I was holding her. She didn't seemed bothered and he remained calm and just smelled her. I do wonder if his presence could be what is making them get more nervous. Has anyone else had experience with cats around chicks?
I also have dogs. They have seen each other through the dog grate door, but can no longer see each other since I built the bigger box. Could that be the problem? Do the chicks like to be able to see out? So far, they have only been out of their pen with my GSD. He is too old and mellow to even care and none of the chicks seemed to be afraid of him. They all walked right by him like he was just a big rock. Ideally, the chickens will not be afraid of the dogs because they need to share the yard. I know this will be a slow process and I will be very careful. Any tips on this would be great!
Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! Especially, if I'm doing something wrong.
(whatever treats you use, make sure they’re getting grit.)
electrolytes are good during times of stress. 
Then they started to push each other off so I put up a second one.
