Need last minute instructions - picking up chicks tomorrow!

[backintime]

OK, guys, I still have butterflies, but they're settling down! Thank you all so much. I'll bring along my little thermometer and put it right on the bottom of the bin, so I can watch the heat from the heating pad. Will plan to drive home before offering water, but will bring a bottle of water just in case I'm delayed for any reason. List idea is GREAT. You know, I've been looking forward to this day for weeks and weeks. Drooling over everyone ELSE's chicks. Admiring everyone ELSE's coops. Becoming the annoying person who talks endlessly about chickens to anybody who will listen, and doesn't even have any chickens! My husband is tolerating it all very well . . . laughs when he sees me at the laptop at 11:30 p.m. He knows without asking, I'm on BYC!

 

[MiniDriver]

Quote:
Are we secret twins?

 

[snowydiamonds]

I thought I was all prepared, with the Husbandry Class, reading all posts here, getting everything ordered, in place, ready for use, but once they got here, I found even though I read about pasty butt that I mentally shelved it, thinking so cleverly mine would never do that so I'll just drop them off at home after dipping each beak into the water several times and watching to see they remembered where the food and water was, etc..

Well, two had pasty butt and it took me 4 hours before I felt safe to leave them and go back to work! Then, I thought everything was as it should be while I was gone, but no, the heat lamp was too hot after all, so after work, had to exchange the bulb.

I used a small bowl of warm water for softening the poo but the water got cold and the poo was rock hard and dry, not budging. I ended up running tap water slowly, keeping the chicks (2) warm in my fist while trying to soften and remove the paste clump. In the end, I found the vegetable cooking oil softened it and applied more after I got it off.

This entire process was interrupted by often dipping the beak to ensure they had the water they needed and the instructions were to add 3 tablespoons per 1 quart water (warm) for first two days.

Without this energy water (sugar converts to energy) I sincerely believe I would have lost the one RIR chick right off the bat because it exhausted this poor chick to remove that pasty and it would have been a fifty-fifty chance of the BO chick surviving, too. It still took another day for them to start looking and feeling like the other feisty chicks.

Now, in only two days, they have grown and changed so much, to me, but they are on their first day of watered down sugar water so they are adjusting to that. Its day by day and I'm cleaning the bedding daily, too. I assume I'll be cleaning the bedding or adding to it more often as they grow so fast this first month.

Be prepared to have a noisy party night if they are in the room adjacent to a bedroom while they are on the sugar water Like newborn babes...

 

[lurky]

I bet the clock seems slow now. I can't take the waiting either. Good luck tomorrow. I think you have a great plan and everything will be fine.don't forget to post pictures.

 

[backintime]

Somebody, please cheer me up. I'm heartbroken! The feed store called at 5:00 p.m. last night and told me he could NOT get the chicks today because he did not have a big enough order. He said they would be here next week. (That's what he said LAST week.) I had the car loaded up and everything was ready here at home.

Should I wait a week and see if he comes through, or try to order them online? Everybody seems to be backordered til July or later for the brown egg layers. I never knew that chicks were so HARD TO GET!

Lurky and MiniDriver, where are you getting yours from? Snowy Diamonds, thank you for sharing your story. I can see that "reading about it" and "doing it" are two different things. When you've got that fragile little life literally in your hands, it's a race against time. Hope the two little ones are bouncing back and that the others are free of the problem. Thanks all, for your help. Wish I had some chickies on which to try out your advice.

 

[MiniDriver]

Chicks are home!

But don't they look more like male golden comets? I was assured they were pullets, but they look like boys to me.

The cats are enthralled. The chicks are not interested in the cats at all.

Backintime, I'm so sorry your feed store screwed up. I would have been ticked!

 

[snowydiamonds]

Thanks, mine are all fine, it was just the first 24-48 hours from the trip. Two are perching already, the RIR roo and the fasst BO girl.

I think what you are facing is that when we order, if we'd stick to one breed we have a bigger chance of getting what we want asap.

By requesting one or two of each breed, it may slow things down if the supplier does not have one or two of those breeds on hand, waiting. Also the chicks may end up different ages, too. I ordered only BO's and straight run RIR's so all the chicks were on hand, the same age.

I'd call back and talk about that, ask your supplier for guidance and ask what he has on hand if you are able to change your mind about what you get and how soon.

A friend has Banties and the entire family loves them so I went to look and compare size of bird and eggs to my RIR flock. They are beautiful and you can have more due to the size, in the coop but I didn't think I'd want banties until I was older and then it'd be a hobby thing, pets, showing, etc.

Well, that idea went out the window real quick

Instead of getting pheasant & quail next, guess what's next? Banties, Wyandottes, White (eggs) for hatching and Blue lace chickies so I've got to prepare another (dog) kennel/crate/cage for birds and my dogs are wondering why I'm using their "caves."

 

[backintime]

Mini, those are some real cuties! They look like they have some serious feathers on their wings. How many did you get? Are they your first ever? And does anybody know, does only the poop stink, or do the little creatures have a strong smell inherent in them?

 

[backintime]

Snowydiamonds, you are right, that's exactly what happened. The feed store owner said they didn't have "enough of what we wanted." I thought that might be the trouble and tried to call him right back last night to change my order, but I think he avoided answering because by the end of our conversation I'm sure he could hear the heartbreak right through the phone line. I'll give your advice a try and call him today.

 

[cjeanean]

Their poop only stinks when it's wet. Once it dries up it doesn't really smell. I'm using the deep litter method that everyone here swears by (LOL) and my coop doesn't stink. Sometimes you get a whiff of a fresh loaf here and there, but usually only when bending down to pick up a chicken. My chickens themselves don't stink, except on their feet when they've stepped in something fresh LOL!!!