Newbie questions

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cori1023

cori1023

In the Brooder
5 Years
Aug 2, 2014
36
2
41
Hello BYC friends, well the day has come and the chicks are coming tomorrow. I have been doing as much HW as I can for the past year.
Our coop is going to be built this week and I have a few questions.
So I am going to let it roll. Windows ? I know the importance of them and want to make sure was do it right. Both for ventilation and daylight. My question is can the roost be set up along the same side as the main window? Is that ok for the girls ? Not sure if that was a yay or nay when reading which way was best.
Also, we went clear over budget with my coop Design but my DH is still letting me go for the big bucks. I can only have one main windows and a small slider one one the opposite side. Will that over enough ventilation?
Now, new question :) you can tell I'm a newbie right ? Lol ok, I want to raise them organically and I am concerned about their health and any possible illness. The poultry hatchery that we are going to be getting them from feeds them a medicated feed. I was thinking to continue them on that but just for a short while till I have them acclimated in my home and all safely together. Then I wanted to switch them to an organic chick feed. Is that safe to do ? If so, for how long should I feed them the medicated feed? How can I do the switch? Mix half-and-half ? Any insight is most helpful. Thanks to all who reply.

This is the coop we are having built .. Not going with the fancy shingles but that is the design. Any suggestions ? I am going with hard wire cloth for sure but if you can advise before it goes up that would be great.
TIA
400
 
Hello there and welcome to BYC!
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So glad you could join our community!

Ventilation becomes more important in colder climates. But it is best to use a 2x4 with the 4 side up for a roost bar. Chickens, especially heavy breeds, need to sit flat footed on the bar with their toes tucked under their breast feathers.

For good ventilation in these small coops, you are better off keeping the roost bar as low to the floor as possible. You want a good space between the birds heads and the vents in the ceiling. When chickens sleep at night, their breathing and the pooping produce a lot of moisture. This moisture will want to rise and go out the vents. If your roost bar is too high, your birds heads will be right into this warm moist air. And in cold climates, this will create a frost bite condition and even in warm humid climates, the birds are going to get wet. So keep the bar as low as you can. Generally 3/4 to 1 square foot of vent space per bird is needed to vent off all that moisture.

As for the feed....Medicated feed contains Amprolium in it and only helps them not get Coccidiosis. Cocci, as it is called, is a protozoa type parasite that lives in all birds and animals intestinal tracts. Chicks need to grow immunity to it over time and Amprolium will help with keeping them from getting sick. HOWEVER....you do not need to use this medicated feed. I have never used it on any of my chicks and allow them to grow immunity naturally. However you have to be extremely clean in the brooder. This parasite is spread through poop and chicks are constantly pooping. I raise all my chicks on wire. The poop falls through the wire, they do come into some poop, which they should for growing immune to it, and nobody get sick because they don't get overwhelmed with the poop. Just enough on the wire to keep them healthy. But you can use regular bedding, just keep it very dry and very clean.

There are a few different brands of Non GMO Organic feeds out there. I have used Manna Pro's Non GMO Organic chick starter and Layer feed. It is not cheap, but if you want to feed these feeds to your birds, there are options. My birds have always done well on these feeds in the past. Right now I have them all on regular feed.

Good luck on this new journey and enjoy your new babies!! I hope they all arrive safely. If they are coming in the mail, make sure to notify your PO so they can let you know as soon as they arrive there. When you get your babies home, first thing you want to do is dip everybody's beaks in the water. Withhold food for 15 mins so that everybody is fully hydrated. This will help to prevent pasty butt they can get from stress and dehydration.

If you have any questions about anything, feel free to ask around the forums. Welcome to our flock!
 
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Glad you decided to join!

You got some very good advise from @TwoCrows. I never feed my chicks medicated feed, since I think they have stronger immune systems with out it. I feed my chicks non GMO fermented feed, and I let them out to scratch in the dirt during the day, and all my chicks grow out strong and healthy.
Thats a very nice coop you have there! Have fun with your birds!
 
Wow thank you to everyone who replied.. Great info :) I am picking up the chicks today from a local poultry hatchery and they are being shipped to them today or tomorrow. I already have the organic feed and did not know how necessary it is to have them on the medicated feed. Also, grit ? I have a bag as well. Do I put that in a separate bowl or add to the feed ? I believe I read to keep it separately. Are the chicks too little for grit? I know so many questions :)
Thank you again to everyone .. I have been stalking this blog for over a year lol such great info here
 
cori1023 said:
Wow thank you to everyone who replied.. Great info :) I am picking up the chicks today from a local poultry hatchery and they are being shipped to them today or tomorrow. I already have the organic feed and did not know how necessary it is to have them on the medicated feed. Also, grit ? I have a bag as well. Do I put that in a separate bowl or add to the feed ? I believe I read to keep it separately. Are the chicks too little for grit? I know so many questions :)
Thank you again to everyone .. I have been stalking this blog for over a year lol such great info here
Click to expand...

Pretty new myself
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From what I've read, the chicks don't need grit until they start eating stuff other than the normal feed IE: meal worms, bugs, and scratch. Hope this helps!
 

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