Day old chicks eating dirt

[MINNIEMOUSE21]

I have a brooder for our hen that keeps her separate from the other hens by the coop. It has her own laying box with bedding and an outdoor area on the dirt. I put a feeder with chick starter and waterer outside for her and the chicks ,but it looks like she is teaching them to peck at the dirt instead of the feeder. Is this normal? what if they are picking up chicken food that has been mixed in with dirt through out the process of her brooding and other hens scratching through the dirt?

 

[Friendly_Lurker]

New chicks will peck at anything, this includes food, each other, their own toes, and dirt. They should be alright. Do you have any pics?

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

They are supposed to eat dirt, more specifically 'rocks'. It helps them digest their food intake through their gizzard where the little rock materials inside of them breaks it down. Something like that.

 

[Punkybrewster]

Dirt is good. Real good if their eating it from the ground around the coop. Good bacteria and building up cocci immunity.

Mother hen instinctivly teaches this from the start. They also need the grit to break down anything they eat that is not chick starter feed.

Chicks brooded by a hen rarely get cocci but make sure you have corid on hand just in case you see bloody poop.

 

[MINNIEMOUSE21]

I think i see her feeding them pieces of dirt.
She is picking up rocks, and (maybe biting of pieces of the rock?). i see them going up to her beak and it looks like shes feeding them pieces of the rock she picks up. or am i imagining this? it also looks like she calls them to get the food out of her mouth as they all run to her at the same time...lol. its not like baby bird feeding, its more of a beak to beak contact.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Chickens don't feed their babies like songbirds, where they regurgitate. So the mama is showing the babies how to forage, how to dig for bugs or food scraps, etc.