New chicks at the Post office! Feeding at first?

[Doc7]

All,

I have a vacation day today for this and am about to go get my hopefully 6 healthy chicks from the USPS when they open in 30 minutes.

I have the typical “chick feeder” (gravity upside down bottle in a circular tray with individual feeding holes) for the first week or so and a “no waste” DIY PVC type for when they demonstrate they can eat out of it. However I have read in a few places that for the first few days chicks can’t even eat from the chicken feeder and should be fed on strips of white paper so they can see the food? Is there a good equivalent to this that I can use when I go to work 24 hours from now? I think with a strip of paper they would just knock all the food off and then go hungry.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Ours eat from a feeder just fine when they come through the mail. I've never heard of doing it any other way.

 

[Sour Roses]

We're waiting for ours shortly today too! So exiting! Make sure to post pics

 

[Doc7]

They are all eating and drinking awesome!

My 3 yr old boy named the Delaware “Chickaletta” for Paw Patrol the day we showed him photos of the breeds we ordered. We’ve named the Easter Egger (or at least the one I think it is) “Chipmunk” for her patterning and I think my wife is naming the New Hampshire Red “Bartlett” for the West wing.

In the one hour between me giving them water and waiting on food (turned out to be 90 mins due to work conference call) the chicks huddled in a sunny spot in the coop and were loudly chirping. I stuck them all under the Mama Heating Pad and they went silent for about half an hour until I brought out the feeder for the first time. Chipmunk has since gone back under so I know that they’ve figured it out.

Photos attached.

 

[aart]

Perfect!!
Might want to put a large jar cap filled with stones or marbles under the waterer to catch drips..will have to be washed daily, but better than wet bedding.

 

[Robert G]

Congratulations! My Easter Eggers all have green feet if that helps you identify yours.

 

[Doc7]

Congratulations! My Easter Eggers all have green feet if that helps you identify yours.

Mine doesn’t but I believe that EEs are mutt breeds that have a blue egg gene in them. They can have a variety of looks or even comb types as far as I know.

 

[sourland]

Looking good. Good luck with them.

 

[Robert G]

Mine doesn’t but I believe that EEs are mutt breeds that have a blue egg gene in them. They can have a variety of looks or even comb types as far as I know.

That's interesting to know. It's' funny that all the ones we have gotten all have green feet. We got them from Ideal Poultry. They were sold as Americaunas but I believe they are just Easter Eggers.

 

[Doc7]

By the way, I have no idea what I was thinking. These chickens will eat anything you tap on with your finger. It was silly to imagine that they couldn’t eat out of this feeder.