New to chickens

[GeneviaJ]

Hi everyone! As you can see from the subject, I'm new to raising chickens. I ordered our first chicks the other day & they will be here March 23rd. I'm wondering what exactly I need to raise them. I'm hoping to keep their diet completely organic. So if I could get suggestions on affordable organic chick starter, that'd be awesome. For our brooder, I'll use either a large sized dog crate, or a large rubbermade tub. We have 2 young children (5 & almost 3), and 2 dogs, and I'm hoping things will work out well with having chickens. One of our dogs...the puppy, seems to be a bird dog (beagle & jack russell, we think), bc she has caught at least 4 birds in our back yard in the few months we've had her, so we'll have to make sure we keep her away. Any advice you can give me will be much appreciated.

 

[dsqard]

I would go to your local feed store and see if they carry organic chick starter. A lot of stores do these days. Since you have the time, if they don't you might have to order it or look for another feed store that does carry it. For the brooder, I would at least start with the plastic tub. They are easy to clean and will keep drafts away from the new chicks. As they get older and more feathered, you can move them to a dog crate if you like. When the chicks first get there, put paper towels down in the brooder instead of pine shavings for a week. The chicks can grab the towels easier than the shavings so you wind up with less chance for spraddle leg. I also like to sprinkle some of the food out on the paper towels until the chicks understand what the food is. They will peck at dark things so the chick food against white paper towels is enticing to them.
Oh and

 

[end9586]