Homesteader's Delight

[Star Flock]

The day has finally arrived! The post office called and said my chickens were ready to be picked up, so my awesome dad drove me there and we went to pick them up. Once we had gotten back home, having already prepared everything, I prodeeded to have them each drink some water(with save-a-chick).Here they are, all settled in. The black and white made the red light of the heat lamp not show up as bad.

Once they were all out of the box I noticed that I only had 9 chicks. The Homesteader's Delight (from Murray Mcmurray) should have 10 chicks. Not sure what I'm going to do about that... So I have 2 ducklings, 2 goslings, 2 poults, and 9 chicks. 1 Chick is missing, and 1 is not doing so great. She's been laying near the heat lamp sleeping pretty much the whole time. I'm letting her rest right now, and I'm giving her water every little while. Hope she pulls through!

I have done a bunch of research about keeping such a variety of poultry together and here's what I decided:

• I'm feeding them organic chick starter (20% protein)
• For the first few days I'll mix save-a-chick into their water
• The temperature at the warmest part of the pool is 105 degrees, the coolest part is 82 degrees
• Day 3, I'll put some rocks into the brooder for the chicks to begin having a roost
• Day 3, I'll start allowing the poults an extra source of protein such as earthworms and beetles.
• Day 3, I'll start putting Brewer's Yeast into their feed, so the ducks, geese, and turkeys will get niacin.
• Day 3, I'll start offering them chick grit as well as giving them clods of grass to peck at.
• As it nears a week, I'm going to allow the ducklings and goslings to experience water(not deep!) and a few minutes in the sun if it's warm enough.

That is what my plan is for the first week, and of course things will change as they grow bigger.

Questions:

1. What should I do about the missing chick? I know I can't order just 1, cause it needs warmth...
2. Any suggestions to help the sick chick?

If anyone has any advice or comments they are much appreciated! This is my first time with chicks and I have a lot to learn. I'll be updating on here as well, and will probably need help discovering what kind of birds I have.


Thanks for reading!

 

[rc4u]

call them and they will credit you the two chicks one missing and one sick..jeff

 

[Star Flock]

Thank you for the reply. I followed your advice and they apologized for the oversight and gave me credit. The sick chick has gotten up by herself to get a drink and is back asleep. Hoping she makes it!

 

[bugflipper]

One aspect I would suggest, well actually two. Chicks will move to adjust to the heat they need. No need in providing a specific temp of 105. If it's dropped a little closer they can get 120 or whatever if they like for short bursts and go about exploring quickly instead of having to recharge for extended lengths of time. The only difference will be when they sleep they will form a larger ring where the light is as they will gravitate to the heat zone they need for comfort. Since they don't have to lay around soaking in heat as long they eat and drink more which makes stronger chicks.

The second suggestion would be to add a teaspoon of sugar to the water along with the mix. Simply more energy. It can be quite comical as they tend to wake up and take off like little rockets. Ultimately you want them to be as active as possible, ingesting as much fuel as possible so they are very healthy from the start..
Good luck.

 

[Star Flock]

Thank you for the suggestions. I know what you mean when you say "like little rockets" cause I've noticed them doing that already. It's pretty hilarious. I went ahead and added sugar to their water, like you said. I understand what you mean about them eating, drinking, and moving around more with a higher temperature so that has been adjusted as well.

When I run out of the save-a-chick packets, I've thought about other things besides just sugar that I can add to their water for extra vitamins and minerals. I've heard good things about Apple Cider Vinegar for chickens and turkeys, but is it okay for ducks and geese?

Thank you!

 

[Star Flock]

Great news! Soon after adding the sugar to their water, they were all dashing around, and I could hardly tell a difference between the sick chick and the others. They're all doing fantastic this morning, I've cleaned out their brooder already, and changed out their water again. I'll try and get some pictures of them soon.

The "sick chick" is also doing well. She is still a little weak on her legs, but is moving around much more than before.

ETA:
Here are the pictures!
This is what all the chicks look like. A reddish tint, lighter around the eyes and on the chest.
Rhode Island Red or New Hampshire Red? I've got a whole list, including Red Star, Speckled Sussex, and Deleware(wishful thinking...) All I know is that they should be all females and will lay brown eggs. Any ideas???

Poult #1 This little guy/girl is adorable! So sweet and curious, he's fallen asleep in my hand twice!

Wild Turkey, Broad-breasted OR Standard Bronze, Narragansett? What could it be?!?!?

Poult #2 White Holland, Royal Palm, maybe a Midget OR Giant white?

Gosling #1 Brown Chinese, Toulose, or African?

Somehow my single picture of gosling #2 got deleted... Here she is with the others. She's a very bright yellow, with a light beak. Buff? White Embden? Tufted Roman? I love her! Or him, you know, either way...

Duckling #1 Khaki or Cayuga? This is the only one that I've got narrowed down to two. Any other ideas, though? He/she is very small, only a little bigger than the chicks.

Duckling #2 Buff, White Pekin, Runner?

I really appreciate any opinions or advice. Is it too soon to tell what kind they are? I'm willing to wait a bit to see if they're male or female, but I hope to be soon figuring out what kind they all are.

 

[bugflipper]

For chicks I use a vitamin and electrolyte, assuming that's exactly what save a chick is. From 7 weeks on I use 1 tbs apple cider vinegar per gallon for everything I have on the farm. I have apple trees and just make it. All it takes is apples, water, yeast and time. The big ducks are in a paddock with a pond so they usually only drink the asv when they come up to eat. But the little call ducks don't have a choice since they are in pens and they are always very healthy. I've never had to worm anything so guessing it works as the old wives tale states on that subject. I never really thought of it but I see a lot of posts on here about sick animals and that's a rare occurrence on my place. Maybe that's the effect of the asv as well. My grandpa always had me make it for his livestock when I was a kid. He claimed it prevented worms and kept everything healthy. You don't want to use it in metal though because it will rust it out. Paint first if you have any metal waterers.
Glad they are all doing well. Enjoyed the pics.
Have a nice day.

 

[Star Flock]

For chicks I use a vitamin and electrolyte, assuming that's exactly what save a chick is. From 7 weeks on I use 1 tbs apple cider vinegar per gallon for everything I have on the farm. I have apple trees and just make it. All it takes is apples, water, yeast and time. The big ducks are in a paddock with a pond so they usually only drink the asv when they come up to eat. But the little call ducks don't have a choice since they are in pens and they are always very healthy. I've never had to worm anything so guessing it works as the old wives tale states on that subject. I never really thought of it but I see a lot of posts on here about sick animals and that's a rare occurrence on my place. Maybe that's the effect of the asv as well. My grandpa always had me make it for his livestock when I was a kid. He claimed it prevented worms and kept everything healthy. You don't want to use it in metal though because it will rust it out. Paint first if you have any metal waterers.
Glad they are all doing well. Enjoyed the pics.
Have a nice day.

Thank you! This is good information! I'm hearing a lot of good things about ACV so I'll double check it's safety(like for the turkeys, I mean) and plan to start giving them some once they're 7 weeks. I haven't purchased the feeder and waterer they'll be using as adults so I'll be careful about the kind I get. Plastic is cheaper usually, anyways, and I've heard that ACV keeps algae from growing so that'd be good. I've also heard stainless steel is okay with ACV...


Day 3.

• I've removed the paper towels from everywhere except their food, and even that will be gone tomorrow(aside from their waterer).
• They have a rock and a stick that they can climb on, now.
• I gave the poults an earthworm and a grub from our flowerbed. They loved it! The ducks and chicks ran around with 'em too, but the poults were the ones who ate them.
• I sprinkled some grit on their food, lightly, and a little more near the rock for them to eat as needed.
• They each get a few minutes of snuggle time, and it's paying off; they seem to be getting more tame every day!

Questions:

1. I've held off on giving them the Brewer's Yeast because I was having second thoughts... I have Pro-Sense Brewer's Yeast tablets for dogs. Is this okay? I would crush it up into a powder and sprinkle it either on their food or on the rock, like I did with the grit.
2. If it is okay, any idea how much to make sure they're getting enough?
3. I take back what I said about all chicks being the same. Some have a dark spot on the tip of their beak. What does that mean?
4. Any suggestions on plastic vs stainless steel feeder and waterer? (That is, if stainless steel is okay with ACV.)

Thanks so much for all the help! I really do appreciate it.

 

[gander007]

Great news! Soon after adding the sugar to their water, they were all dashing around, and I could hardly tell a difference between the sick chick and the others. They're all doing fantastic this morning, I've cleaned out their brooder already, and changed out their water again. I'll try and get some pictures of them soon.

The "sick chick" is also doing well. She is still a little weak on her legs, but is moving around much more than before.

ETA:
Here are the pictures!
This is what all the chicks look like. A reddish tint, lighter around the eyes and on the chest.
Rhode Island Red or New Hampshire Red? I've got a whole list, including Red Star, Speckled Sussex, and Deleware(wishful thinking...) All I know is that they should be all females and will lay brown eggs. Any ideas???

Poult #1 This little guy/girl is adorable! So sweet and curious, he's fallen asleep in my hand twice!

Wild Turkey, Broad-breasted OR Standard Bronze, Narragansett? What could it be?!?!?

Poult #2 White Holland, Royal Palm, maybe a Midget OR Giant white?

Gosling #1 Brown Chinese, Toulose, or African?

Somehow my single picture of gosling #2 got deleted... Here she is with the others. She's a very bright yellow, with a light beak. Buff? White Embden? Tufted Roman? I love her! Or him, you know, either way...

Duckling #1 Khaki or Cayuga? This is the only one that I've got narrowed down to two. Any other ideas, though? He/she is very small, only a little bigger than the chicks.

Duckling #2 Buff, White Pekin, Runner?

I really appreciate any opinions or advice. Is it too soon to tell what kind they are? I'm willing to wait a bit to see if they're male or female, but I hope to be soon figuring out what kind they all are.

You have gotten a lot of useful information above ...

Nice looking young flock you have enjoy them

Keep up posted on your success with this bunch ...

 

[Star Flock]

Thank you so much for the kind words! I'll definitely keep y'all posted.