Grit by itself

[rosinsk1772]

My chicks are 8 weeks old, and we started giving them corn scratch so the kids could start their own petting zoo. I put a side dish of grit near their food. Is that okay or should I limit the grit

 

[Egghead_Jr]

That's fine. They don't need a lot just enough to use in crop to grind. Leaving too much out would only lead to them scratching it about and possible waste. If they've access to dirt they can find their own. I will gather small stones from side of road or driveway now and then in winter for mine as the run gets frozen over. What happens if they don't have enough is they eat more food.

 

[rosinsk1772]

They will only eat as much grit as they need though right?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Right. Same with oyster shells on the side if you don't use layer feed.

 

[rosinsk1772]

Do I need oyster she'll before their laying

 

[centrarchid]

I start the oyster shell application about time of first lay. My preferred method for application is to simply scatter it over grass but it can also be keeped in a small bowl where consumption is easy to monitor.

With the kid's petting zoo interest. consider using live mealworms. Use live over free-dried. You will see some very interesting interactions not realized by using scratch or feed.