Going outside

[Chickie64]

My chicks are three weeks old and I took them outside for the first time today. They ate grass and clovers, so should I give them grit or should they be alright?

 

[TOP KNOT]

My chicks are three weeks old and I took them outside for the first time today. They ate grass and clovers, so should I give them grit or should they be alright?

They should have grit if they eat anything other than their starter crumbles. The starter is designed to be digested without grit.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

If you have purchased chick grit, then yes I'd give them the grit. You can put some in a pie pan for them, or sprinkle it over their food like salt (from McMurray website). Only give them grit in a pan if they are older than 2 weeks, as they may overingest it at less than 2 weeks of age. Under 2 weeks, sprinkle like salt.

Instead, if you have no purchased grit, you can give them a little sand or you can make sure they have access to the sharp gravel in the soil by free ranging (if they are going in and out of the coop all day to their heat lamp- then outside, which I do starting at three weeks in a shed coop with no steep ramp).If they have to navigate a steep ramp then extra caution must be exercised as they may get confused and stay outside. I only do this with a very tiny enclosure fenced in with netting overhead for hawks.

What you can do is give them a pie pan filled with sand. They will be very excited about it and eat it up like there is no tomorrow, then take dust baths in it!

I brood with sand now. No pine shavings. But for the first couple of days I put paper towels down over it and sprinkle food on the towels so they learn what their food is.