Medicated chick feed

[amillecay]

I am going to have some chicks hatching in a week or so (my first ones!). And I was just wondering about feed.... so what I have read so far is that you feed chick starter up to 6 weeks, they are gonna be with their mum as she is hatching them so my question here is, is it okay for her to be eating the medicated chick feed I mean wont it mess her up with her eating patterns? I really don't like the idea of giving them medicated stuff but they wont be vaccinated and organic feed seems so expensive I will just have to.

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

I have never fed medicated chick feed, nor have i ever vaccinated a chick or chicken. The best thing about a hen raising her chicks is she'll show them what to eat. I've always fed my chicks mash type feeds (same as the hens eat) or all purpose poultry. If it comes in a pellet form you crush it to a mash/almost powder.

 

[amillecay]

I have never fed medicated chick feed, nor have i ever vaccinated a chick or chicken. The best thing about a hen raising her chicks is she'll show them what to eat. I've always fed my chicks mash type feeds (same as the hens eat) or all purpose poultry. If it comes in a pellet form you crush it to a mash/almost powder.

Ok so should i try and get all purpose feed then? because i feed all the other girls a laying feed and i know that's not good for the chicks of course.

 

[Sweetlilbaby]

I've fed the "egg maker" or "laying mash" to chicks without any issues. But I've had better success with all purpose poultry. It's all up to you.
I also take chicks out on nice days in a wire dog crate and let them eat bugs and grass.

 

[amillecay]

yeah I plan on doing that thankyou I will look into it some more then


Thanks!

 

[JacksFlock]

Just finished reading Harvey Ussery's book and I'm going to follow his ideas. No medicated feed. The chicks will need a higher protein feed than the adults as they are trying to grow , and the adults need layer feed for the eggs.

 

[amillecay]

Just finished reading Harvey Ussery's book and I'm going to follow his ideas. No medicated feed. The chicks will need a higher protein feed than the adults as they are trying to grow , and the adults need layer feed for the eggs.

Yeah that's a good point

 

[speckledhen]

You are better off to feed an age-appropriate feed to your birds.

Chicks need higher protein when they are growing like weeds the first few weeks. Some areas, starter is available. In some areas, like mine, you can ONLY get starter/grower combination feed, which is 18% protein, is medicated with amprolium, the thiamine blocker that supposedly helps them build immunity to cocci (doesn't always help much, though, in truth), does not contain the excess calcium that chicks do not need, and that is what I feed until they are close to laying age and ready to go into the coop with adults.

Chicks need starter, doesn't matter if medicated or non-medicated, in truth. They can still have cocci, even on the medicated type, trust me.

Layers need layer feed with the slightly lowered protein and the extra calcium for egg production and no amprolium.

 

[amillecay]

Yeah this is what I was all thinking so could I get non-medicated feed and not worry much about cocci or do they have less a chance of getting cocci with out it and maybe I should. I know not to give them layer feed, when they are so young for sure and I have heard of people giving them of course the all purpose feed because they have a mixed flock and so forth.

 

[speckledhen]

Best thing to do is put dirt from your property into their brooder, like in a shallow pan, and make them a little dustbath so they are exposed early on, from the first week of life. That's what would happen if they were roaming with a broody mama hen-babies raised by broodies rarely, if ever, get cocci, for some reason.

Then you watch for symptoms of coccidiosis and seek out a source of Corid 9.6% solution, just in case. Fluffed up, lethargic chicks and bloody poop are signs of coccidiosis. Even chicks raised on medicated feed in a brooder, with no exposure to dirt, when suddenly plopped outside at 4-6 weeks old, can be overwhelmed by the oocysts in the soil that cause cocci.

What many don't know is that chicks can hatch with oocysts in their gut already, then when they hit soil, if they haven't been exposed to it in the brooder already, they can get coccidiosis within a week or two.

And, by the way, cleanliness in the brooder is NO guarantee against cocci, in spite of what others may say! It should be kept dry and the water free of poop, certainly, but it's not a guarantee they won't get cocci even if you are the Martha Stewart of Brooder Cleaners.