New to raising chicks, need advice please

[mhay1]

Hi, we are brand new to raising baby chickens and just got our 15 new baby chicks about 5 days ago. After a couple of days I noticed a few of the chicks having pasty butt which I learned about on some you-tube videos. On the video they suggested as a preventive to offer finely ground organic cornmeal, a scrambled egg mashed well, probiotics in their water and some other remedies. I have started doing this, but I have a few questions that hopefully some of you can help me with.

1. How often to offer the scrambled egg, daily and for how long?
2. How much cornmeal to give daily?( I have not started with grit yet)
(one suggested adding both the scrambled egg and cornmeal to their food, but I am unsure of that?)
3. I'm adding probiotic and electrolytes (packets) to water, do I use organic apple cider vinegar too, if yes how much?

(My husband say's I'm like their mother hen and would sleep with them if I could, LOL.)
Thanks so much !

 

[Pyxis]

You don't need to give them scrambled egg or cornmeal to treat pasty butt. The most common causes of pasty butt are temperature issues, and it usually has nothing to do with diet. Either they are stressed and too cold (very common for shipped chicks) or they are too hot and can't get away from their heat source. Fixing this will fix the pasty butt. Just keep washing them off and it will subside in a couple of days or sooner.

Improper diet can also sometimes cause it because it gives them diarrhea - what are you feeding them as their staple diet? Chicks don't need anything other than a good chick feed, and in fact really shouldn't get anything other than a good chick feed except maybe some egg as a treat until they are older and have access to grit.

 

[mhay1]

They are getting organic baby chick crumbles, non medicated. The temp in their brooder is reading a steady 95 degrees and they have an area where they can get cooled off if needed. I have only found 2 with the pasty butt and have washed it off twice, put vaseline on and they look good for now.
What about adding OCV to their water along with the electrolytes and probiotics or is that not necessary?
Thanks for the advice!

 

[Pyxis]

It's not necessary to do so You could if you wanted though, but the electrolytes and probiotics on their own are plenty. Your two with it likely had it as a result of shipping stress, and now that they are settled it will clear up on its own

 

[lazy gardener]

You don't need to give them scrambled egg or cornmeal to treat pasty butt. The most common causes of pasty butt are temperature issues, and it usually has nothing to do with diet. Either they are stressed and too cold (very common for shipped chicks) or they are too hot and can't get away from their heat source. Fixing this will fix the pasty butt. Just keep washing them off and it will subside in a couple of days or sooner.

Improper diet can also sometimes cause it because it gives them diarrhea - what are you feeding them as their staple diet? Chicks don't need anything other than a good chick feed, and in fact really shouldn't get anything other than a good chick feed except maybe some egg as a treat until they are older and have access to grit.

I agree with Pyxis re: temp issues. In addition, some chicks have increased difficulty due to hatching stress, shipping stress, or just may not be as robust as their flock mates. Many of the remedies (corn meal, egg, and others that you will hear about) just might have coincidentally worked, because almost all chicks eventually grow out of PB, which coincided with the "remedy".

IMO, the biggest newbie mistake is keeping the chicks too warm. Many chicks are brooded with a heat lamp, and to make matters worse, they are brooded in a rubbermaid tote. Add summer temps to the mix, and you have a recipe for disaster at worst, and uncomfortable chicks at best. If you haven't yet, you might want to check out this article. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/yes-you-certainly-can-brood-chicks-outdoors Add this to a large brooder, or brood them right in their coop, and you can't go wrong regarding temp issues. Brooding outside will also protect your lungs from the dander, and it will protect your home from the fine layer of silty, oily dander that will soon cover every surface in your home. It has a way of migrating past the room the chicks are in, BTW.

As far as PB issues go, IMO, you can do much to mimic the environment and diet Mama Broody would provide. No one has ever reported broody raised chicks being affected by PB. Give those chicks a plug of sod from your yard (be sure it's not been treated with insecticides or herbicides) or you could give them a dish of soil from your garden. It will provide: a healthy dose of good bacteria and fungi to jump start their digestive systems, their first exposure to coccidiosis, (Don't panic at this statement: Coccidiosis organisms are in every yard and in every soil. They are actually in every chicken's gut. The only time they cause disease is when the chicken has a compromised immune system, or if they are being kept in a damp environment where the organisms proliferate to the point where the good gut flora are overwhelmed.) In the first 2 weeks after hatch, the chick's immune system is strongest. (Much like a human baby receiving immunity from his mother in the early weeks and months) That's the best time to work on beefing up that chick's system. The soil will help with this. Mama would have her chicks out in the barn yard, and they'd be eating soil laced with cocci, and also chicken poop which would also provide good gut flora. Back to the sod or soil. It will also provide some minerals, some little seeds and insects, some grit, their first greens, first dust bath, and good opportunity to play queen of the hill.

 

[mhay1]

Thanks so much for all of your help.