How do you give your chicks apples? (5 week old chicks)

[gale65]

Do I need to chop them up or can I just throw a few slices in there? They are laying the guilt trip on me. Every time I go to look at them, they all rush the fence/gate where I'm standing, waiting on a treat. I hate to disappoint them.

so I want to have a good variety of treats at the ready. So far I've only given them hot dog buns and quick oats.

 

[Shannon33]

I've never given apples, but I would cut them up. Make sure there are no seeds, I think the seeds have a cyanide compound in them. I could be wrong but seems to be one of those little tidbits of information stuck in my brain somewhere, lol.
Mine really love raisins!

 

[gale65]

I'll have to get some raisins at the store. Maybe some of those other pkgs of dried fruit too (I know they're expensive but what the heck-I only have a few chickens

).

 

[cpegram]

BOSS. Black oiled sunflower seeds they love them!!

 

[gale65]

Unfortunately I don't buy BOSS. So far I can't find any that I know isn't cross contaminated with peanut and if dd (who is allergic to all nuts and peanuts) even touches them, she has a reaction. We grew our own sunflowers last year but this year I didn't get them planted in time. I may plant some today but they probably won't mature well planting them this late.

 

[Wildflower_VA]

They will love the raw apples. Just slice them fairly thinly and they will peck them to pieces. When they are closer to full grown, you can give whole apples or halves. They like all kinds of fruits, like grapes and bananas and mine love shredded carrots. They like colorful treats. If you do buy them dried fruit, soak it to make it softer.

Isn't it amazing how at such a young age, they can lay a guilt trip on you??? If you come to the pen NOT bearing treats, they have stink eye down pat by the time they are barely old enough to have feathers. I was in their pen for a long time today, working, so no treats after the first few minutes. They kept looking at me expectantly and making this mournful sound, which kept getting louder and louder, until I went in the house and shredded them several carrots, their favorite treat and gave them second helpings of their very expensive organic, soy-free scratch. They are almost 18 weeks old and spoiled rotten!

 

[Chick15]

We have been feeding watermelon, and they love it! We have given them apples before, but they didn't eat the slices....

 

[rsarns]

I chop mine up, I core them first... chop them into 1 inch pieces and they go crazy over them....

 

[SierraView]

I cut it in half and take out the seeds and core. They love it and are able to peck off pieces. Next day all thats left is the skin, I toss that out.

 

[johnschiks]

I throw the whole thing to them and they do the rest. They love picking at them for hours. Unles you are feeding them apples by the ton it's not going to hurt them.