Question about baby chicks and wood shavings HELP!!!

[logansmommy7]

They eat the food and drink water but I put them in wood shavings (the kind from TS-that is where I got them)...but they are scratching and maybe eating some of the shavings! What do I do? Is this going to kill them? They seem so healthy tonight...they are warm enough with the bulb but I'm just not sure. I have never raised chicks from a day old before. I have 8 black australorps and 2 New hampshire reds...I'm in love but don't want them to die!

 

[4chickns]

I wouldn't worry too much. I don't know for certain but I don't think it's going to hurt them. My chickens have eaten some of their shavings since the day we got them (almost a week old) and they are a year old now and perfectly healthy. They love to scratch around in the shavings and find little treats. Maybe if you put some treats in there they would eat that instead. Just a thought. They're just looking for food, even if they have a whole dish of it right there.

 

[907chicken]

mine have been eating lots of shavings for 2 weeks and are just fine. as long as your using pine shavings your good.

 

[logansmommy7]

Whew....I was worried when a friend told me that I should have started them out on paper towels. They are vigorous and eating food and drinking...hopefully they will be alive in the morning! Love those little buggers....

 

[fastpat]

Mine are just over three weeks old now and have been directly on Aspen wood chips/shavings since their third day alive with no noticeable ill effects.

 

[KKatknap]

Quote:
When my first batch of chicks did that, I was kinda freaked out, too, but they ended up just fine. I don't know if they ever really ate any of them, but it looked like they were! I do put paper towels over the pine shavings for the first day, but once I know they know where/what the food is, I take the paper towels out. They like to peck at and try out pretty much everything in there, and I haven't had a problem, yet.

Have fun with your little guys!

 

[Backyard_Chicken_rancher]

Don't worry I know easier said then done but they are not really eating the shavings yes they are scratching them up but twhat you see them doing is getting food or something like bugs off the shavings (Not saying you have bugs but the wood has some on the wood) but they do chew on it but they never really eat it if they know where the food is.
Wood shavings don't taste the same as the food but it is something they can/do play with so no worries they will be just fine.


Oh and don't freak out when they are outside in the run for good because they eat rocks and bugs and dirt heck they anything that doesn't eat them first

they are pigs with feathers but they will be fine trust me I was the same way till I watched them run around the brooder with it but never eat it.