new to baby chiks and what type of feed???????? help

[pefferlawchicken]

i have 2 chiks hatching april 4th and 17 chiks hatching on april 9th and we are going to buy chick feed tommorow and i dont have any clue what to buy can you tell me what i should get ??

 

[Snakeoil]

Chick starter.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Snakeoil is right, but talk to the people at the feed store. They will know exactly what you need. You might as well get to know them as you will see a lot of them.

The one decision you will have to make is whether you want medicated or non-medicated feed. The medicated feed is not an antibiotic. It inhibits reproduction of coccidiosis (or cocci as it is sometimes called) protazoa in your chicks. It does not kill the cocci but limits its growth. Cocci protazoa are small organisms that are everywhere, including in the ground. They live and reproduce in the intestines. There are many different strains and are host dependent. Cocci that live in dogs, for example, probably would not live in chickens.

Chickens are going to be exposed to cocci and need to develop an immunity from cocci. Chicks not exposed to cocci in the first week do not develop an immunity, so a little cocci is good. What kills the chicks is when the cocci gets concentrated in their systems. And some strains of cocci are more deadly than others. The cocci gets concentrated when the brooder is not kept clean, so cleaning the brooder regularly will go an extremely long way toward preventing cocci problems. Using medicated feed is "insurance" that the cocci will not get too concentrated, but it will not prevent problems if the brooder is filthy.

Many people do not feed medicated starter and things work out fine. Others always use it. It is a personal choice.

By the way, cocci is primarily a brooder problem. Chicks raised by their mamas with the flock hardly ever develop cocci problems. They build up a strong immune system from eating off the ground where the other chickens have deposited droppings.