Nervous New Momma to 16 three day old chics!

[hmschlmom5]

We finally did it! Years of patience and we now have our first flock of 16 from Murray McMurray. We have them in a horse water trough in our garage with the brooder board so they are only using 3/4 the length. We added the Quick Chic to the water and dipped their beaks in the water first. An hour later we added Grow Gel Plus to the food and put that in. They seem to all be doing well. I just realized I read somewhere to put newspaper down the first day and put the food on it.....should I go back and do that?

I was told at TSC I didn't have to put the Baby Grit in with the Chick Starter feed...is that correct? I am so nervous, but so excited about this new adventure. We are on five acres and are looking forward to raising chickens!

We have Americanas, Buff Orpingtons, Cuckoo Marans, 1 Egyptian Fayoumis, Pearl White Leghorns, Sex LInked Red Stars, Silver Laced Wyandottes and one rare exotic chic they added that I am sure will be a rooster lol

Any advice is welcomed!

 

[dekel18042]

Welcome!
You got a very interesting assortment. If your order was all girls, there is a good chance that your mystery chick is a girl too. It will be fun to see what it is.

 

[hmschlmom5]

lol Yes, all family members had their favorites I'm excited to watch them grow! Thank you.

 

[TwoCrows]

Welcome to BYC!

So glad you could join our community! No, do not use newspaper. Too slippery and can cause spraddle legs. It is best to put down paper towels for a few days and sprinkle feed all around the feeder area so they can find it. Then remove the towels when they have all figured out where the food is. Always dip beaks in the water first before they eat to help prevent pasty butt, and they also know where water is kept as well.

If you need some tips and hints on raising your new babies, stop by a page in our learning center on the first 60 days of raising chicks...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/...ks-the-first-60-days-of-raising-baby-chickens

Good luck with your new babies! If you have any other questions, that is what we are here for. Welcome to our flock!

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! Good luck with your new chicks, that is a nice assortment you got!. TwoCrows gave you a nice link to dealing with baby chicks, X2 on papertowels are good to use for the first few days You don't have to add grit to their feed if you are not feeding them anything but chick starter, but it won't hurt to do so, if you do feed them anything like treats then they will need it.

 

[gander007]

 

[hmschlmom5]

Thank you all! You are too kind! I am devastated! We lost two! We got our chicks yesterday. One died shortly after we got home, looks like he may not have shipped well and got squished. The second I believe may have had something wrong with her. She never really opened her eyes. She wouldn't walk around. I would have to dip her beak and tried to hand feed her once we noticed she would not eat. She just never did come around. It was AWFUL!! We love them all so much already!
The other 14 all seem to be thriving! They were hatched on the 4th, so they are 4 days old. I haven't let anyone handle them so not to stress them out, but there is one sweet thing that every time I put my hand in to clean/change water/feed or check the temp, she jumps in my hand. Just precious!

Thank you all for your guidance!

 

[JBJ Poultry]

I ordered chicks 3 weeks ago from a different hatchery. I also lost a couple in the first few days. It's terrible when it happens but made me appreciate the rest even more. You will really enjoy them. Welcome to BYC.