Egg crate foam in brooder?

[For my girl]

I need to set up my brooders for A&M quail that are due to start hatching on New Years Eve. I have a few 1 foot by 6 foot strips of egg crate mattress foam. Would it be okay to put some in the brooder and put food on it - or would the chicks eat the foam.

 

[Smuvers Farm]

The chicks peck at everything, and so it would be easy to peck into the foam and end up eating it. Best case scenario? They fill up on foam. Worst case? They get poisoned and die. I vote no on the egg foam. Try something less toxic, like dry leaves, pine shavings, even shredded newspaper.

 

[For my girl]

Thanks. I have pine shavings - I just thought the foam would be better for them to find food on.

 

[JaeG]

I'd put them on paper towels or non slip shelf liner for the first few days so that you can scatter food everywhere and wherever they peck they'll find food. By day 3 they should all know where the feeder is and you can put them on shavings after that. Good luck with your hatch!