New Chickie Mama. Iv got 4 day old chicks.

[ArraAchicksMama]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.
I haven't raised chicks in 6 years since the first batch. I let the broody hens and the flock raise my chicks now.

However, I see the mama hens breaking up pieces of grass and weeds to feed their kids. And they do that as soon as they come off the nest anywhere from 1 to 4 days. But the chicks are also out on the ground so they have access to grit. If you're going to feed your chicks anything other than chick food, you must offer them chick sized grit.

Which chick grit do you suggest? My babies are 4 day old.

 

[DobieLover]

Which chick grit do you suggest? My babies are 4 day old.

Any. It just had to be small enough for them to swallow. Don't let them gorge on it.

 

[Debbie292d]

Which chick grit do you suggest? My babies are 4 day old.

Any brand is fine, just so it says it's for chicks, so it's small enough. We just use garden dirt which is pretty course.

 

[janiedoe]

Welcome to BYC. Good luck with your little flock!

 

[Nomadicus]

Hello and Welcome to BYC. Glad to have you here with us in this poultry loving community.

 

[HowIsItDone]

Hiya, and welcome to BYC!

If I'm raising them, I only give them mash (wet starter crumbles) for the first two or three weeks. They need the nutrients in their feed to get a good start in life, and they think of that as a treat.

After a couple of weeks, we'll try a little scrambled eggs. We put a dish of garden dirt (grit) in there too, which they totally mess up. If we've got a ripe banana, strawberries, blueberries, etc., I've tried those and they leave them sit. I've tried mashing those up in in their mash, and then they try it. Again, those things are diluting the nutrients in their feed. I have silkies who are prone to suffer from vitamin deficiencies so I am very cautious about them getting anything besides their feed for their first 4 months.

How long do you soak their feed to turn it into mash?
20 minutes, an hour?

 

[LaurenRitz]

Which chick grit do you suggest? They are on Purina starter non medicated feed right now.

Dirt from your yard.

 

[Debbie292d]

How long do you soak their feed to turn it into mash?
20 minutes, an hour?

I put their crumbles in a small Pyrex bowl (4 oz I think), then take it to the faucet and gentle spray warm water over it a couple of times, and serve. I do not stir it or let it sit. Just wet it and give it to them.

They'll trample it flat, so then I stir it, and they all come eat some more.

 

[HowIsItDone]

Which chick grit do you suggest ?

I'm planning to dig some soil with grass/clover/weeds, cut the plants short, and let them find their grit there.

Could that work for you?

 

[HowIsItDone]

I put their crumbles in a small Pyrex bowl (4 oz I think), then take it to the faucet and gentle spray warm water over it a couple of times, and serve. I do not stir it or let it sit. Just wet it and give it to them.

They'll trample it flat, so then I stir it, and they all come eat some more.

Thank you.
Does the water stay in, or do you drain it?