Maximum calcium content for chick food? Store sold me the wrong feed

[FowlWitch]

I went in and asked for chick crumbles. The guy gave me a bag that was labelled "Extreme Chicken premium feed". I niavely trusted the employee so I bought it and took it home (a full hour's drive) only to notice a tiny, barely noticeable piece of paper stapled to the bottom that said Layer Feed -_- it says the calcium content is 4.7%. it's too late to drive it back down the mountain to exchange it, and I won't have time again until next week. Is it okay to feed my chicks? Should I just order a small bag of real chick food on Amazon to tide them over?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It won't kill them being fed for a week or two, but I would get something more appropriate asap.

 

[ChickNanny13]

If you have a Walmart call to see if they have Chick Starter. Any neighbors around you can borrow some feed from?

 

[David61]

If you have free shipping Amazon Prime it's a no brainer. You need chick starter.
Chick starter contains 20% protein while grower and layer feed contains around 16-18% of protein. Layer feed also contains calcium which is why it should not be fed to baby chicks younger than 18 weeks. Too much calcium will harm the chick's kidneys permanently which can lead to death.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/difference-between-chick-starter-and-layer-feed.874792/

 

[rosemarythyme]

Chick feed generally contains around 1% calcium from what I've seen. I'd feed it if there's no other option, and try to pick up some chick feed as soon as feasible.

 

[Folly's place]

An amazing amount of calcium, even for laying hens! Take it back and meanwhile feed something else as soon as you can.
Mary

 

[FowlWitch]

Thanks for the help, everybody