Do I have what I need?

[sarahfvosz]

I'm new to chickens and in a rural area- I have to order everything online! (I mainly use amazon for free shipping). To get started with 4 egg-layers, here's what I'm planning on ordering. Please tell me if this is right.

-Is this enough bedding and food to get us through the chick stage?
-Why in the world does grit cost so much and do I really need 5lbs of it??
-These are the only chicks I'm planning on raising for a long time, so do I really need a fancy chick feeder & waterer or can I DIY something?
-Is this enough chick starter (my understanding I feed this up to 8 weeks of age) and grower (my understanding I feed this from 8-18 weeks) for 4 hens?
-I read that the heating plate is much safer than a heating lamp. True? I'm hoping I can resell it when I'm done and recoop most of the cost.

Anything I'm missing? Would like to also order anything I need when the chicks are grown, while I'm at it.

 

[PirateGirl]

To save some cost, based on your questions, I'd say you can use something you already have or something from your recycling for feed and water. There are some good ideas in the articles section on how to make clever feeders and waterers from things you may have at home that the chicks can't make a huge mess of, but really anything can work. My current brooder waterer is made from an empty gallon milk jug and the feeder is made from a half gallon plastic juice bottle. I previously made one from an empty plastic coffee container and I'm making an oyster shell dispenser for the outdoor run from an empty wine bottle and some twine. Also the existing feeder and waterer on your order will likely be too small for them when grown, so I would probably skip it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/category/feeders-waterers.26/

You can check out @Blooie 's article on making your own heating pad for your chicks instead of purchasing the heating plate. It will likely be cheaper, and you can reuse the heating pad for yourself later. Take a look at this before you place your order in case you need to add anything for the build.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/brooding-with-mama-heating-pad.67728/

I don't have access to my book right now, but you should be able to find a chart of how much feed it will take to get your chicks to a certain age, lbs. per week or something. That will give you an idea of how much food you will go through. You are on the right track! Food, water, bedding, heat. You will go through the grit eventually. Depending on your soil they may or may not go through much of it once outdoors. Mine went through more as chicks in the brooder than as adults outdoors all the time. Grit doesn't go bad, so if it takes a long time to use all 5lbs it's ok. That bedding will last awhile, and if you run out, you can improvise with things from your yard or an old towel or something.

 

[Rose Quartz]

I'm new to chickens and in a rural area- I have to order everything online! (I mainly use amazon for free shipping). To get started with 4 egg-layers, here's what I'm planning on ordering. Please tell me if this is right.

-Is this enough bedding and food to get us through the chick stage?
-Why in the world does grit cost so much and do I really need 5lbs of it??
-These are the only chicks I'm planning on raising for a long time, so do I really need a fancy chick feeder & waterer or can I DIY something?
-Is this enough chick starter (my understanding I feed this up to 8 weeks of age) and grower (my understanding I feed this from 8-18 weeks) for 4 hens?
-I read that the heating plate is much safer than a heating lamp. True? I'm hoping I can resell it when I'm done and recoop most of the cost.

View attachment 1388016

Anything I'm missing? Would like to also order anything I need when the chicks are grown, while I'm at it.

you can DIY the feeders and waterers. My sister uses plastic containers, a bowl or bucket depending on the size of her birds for a waterer.

I haven't had only 4 chicks, but I really don't think that will be enough feed. or bedding. The grit they will grow out of if you get chick sized before you use that whole bag. you could give them tiny pebbles until they're old enough for normal sized grit. I don't think most people bother buying grit.

the grower feed you can keep them on even as adults if you provide oyster shell once they start laying.

Usually feed is bought in 40 to 50 lb bags.

For 4 chicks I would say maybe 20lbs of starter would do. for 8 weeks. (That's just a guesstimate though.)

 

[rosemarythyme]

If you're not planning on feeding any treats while they're little, you can probably get by without grit until they're older (8 weeks+) and then get pullet or adult size grit. Or get larger grit and sift through it for the tiniest pieces, and offer those to the chicks.

You can definitely DIY a waterer and feeder, though I like having those little waterers on hand, they're useful if you ever have to isolate a chicken for medical treatment or broodiness. For feed I simply put the crumble on a small paper plate, and just threw them away as they got soiled.

Hard to guesstimate how much bedding and feed you'll need. I had 3 chicks last time, pretty sure I went through about 2 bags of bedding (won't hurt to buy extra as you can use it later in the coop, or nest boxes). Food I bought by the pound so I completely lost track of how much I had to buy and how often.

 

[blackdog043]

I'm new to chickens and in a rural area- I have to order everything online!

How far are you actually from feed stores or tractor supply? You might actually save money, even if you had to drive a little distance.

 

[PirateGirl]

How far are you actually from feed stores or tractor supply? You might actually save money, even if you had to drive a little distance.

I agree with this. My feed store is about an hour away, I make sure to get any supplies I'm low on any time I'm in that town. With feed, it's definitely cheaper than paying for shipping. Since I don't go too often I can usually get it when it's on sale. When I only had 5 chickens I would go through approximately a 50lb. bag of feed once a month. Making an hour trip once a month is not bad, especially if I can tie in other errands.

 

[snow5164]

The thing with the fancy feeders and waterers is they will last forever and you will get money back if you choose to sell. I’ve done the dyi and I feel like you get what you pay for.chickens are very messy , Destructive beasts . Maybe you can find used ones?? Good luck and have fun.

 

[PirateGirl]

I don't disagree that a good feeder and waterer are worth purchasing. I would consider one that will take you beyond the brooder. You could consider investing in nipples and install them on a water bottle or something small in the brooder and then convert to a larger container when the chicks have grown and move outside. You could get a larger feeder that holds more, or know that the one you have pictured may need to be topped up/refilled later on in the day... or you could purchase two of those feeders, when they are little, just have one in the brooder and you can swap out a dirty one for a clean one, and once they are grown you can have 2 feeding stations set up in run.

 

[sarahfvosz]

How far are you actually from feed stores or tractor supply? You might actually save money, even if you had to drive a little distance.

I am in rural Alaska, aka "the bush". The feed store is about 500 miles away and there are no roads, so we have to fly to the "big city" of Anchorage which costs $600 round trip and we are allowed 2 free bags. Usually we take advantage of this by filling coolers with food from Costco when we do go.

I asked some local chicken owners and they get their chick feed from Amazon and chicken feed from the ANC store. It ends up being about $1 per lb at the cheapest. These are some expensive chickens! Ah well, it will be fun.

 

[sarahfvosz]

I don't disagree that a good feeder and waterer are worth purchasing. I would consider one that will take you beyond the brooder.

I don't mind buying one that we can also use for the grown hens. I've already bought a hanging feeder for the coop- will that work for chicks too? Can you recommend a waterer that will work for both chicks and grown hens, that I can also find a way to heat in the winter (maybe heated dog water dish underneath?)? This is an area I have not yet researched too much.