Feeding new chicks

[AlabamaChickenHead]

I received 14 (I ordered 10 and got 4 freebees) day old chicks from Ideal on Thursday. I ordered 4 Ameraucana pullets, 3 Barred Rock pullets and 3 Red Sex Link Pullets, the 4 freebees look like Brown Leghorn Roosters, but just a wild guess based on pictures of chicks and what I knew Ideal was hatching that week.
Anyway they were perfectly healthy and started eating starter crumbles and drinking water immediately. I also gave them the gro-gel for the first couple of days.

The only one that showed any signs of weakness was a Chestnut Brown Ameraucana (based on the dark colored legs). She would not drink or eat and would just sit facing the wall of my brooder and getting knocked around by the other active chicks. I dipped her beak in the water over and over, but she would not drink on her own. I forced some Gro-Gel into her beak several times also. By day 2 she was eating, drinking, and running all over the place.

I have them on 24% Turkey Starter, for the first 7 days, then I will drop back to 20% Chick Starter, until they go on Layer feed.

I have some good pictures, i will upload shortly.

BTW.....this was my first order from Ideal, and I am very pleased after just 4 days, my chicks look awesome

 

[sharone]

Thanks for the comments about the good luck you have had with Ideal and also about the success you had with forced feeding. That is basically where I am now, so maybe I will have some success with the others.

 

[wxdude99]

Mine wouldn't eat it when they arrived a week ago, so I sprinkled some starter feed on it and they gobbled it up. After that one time with the gel, I've been feeding them the starter feed. They love that stuff.

 

[AlabamaChickenHead]

Intresting............... I have had to sprinkle Gro-Gel on the feed to get them to start eating the Gro-Gel, but never had to sprinkle feed on the Gro-Gel to get them to start eating the feed. I guess it just depends on which they develop a taste for first.

Typically I can just trow a little starter feed on a white paper towel in the brooder and they automatically start pecking at it.