- Thread starter
- #11
Chickole
In the Brooder
We’re using a heat plate with one side shorter than the other so that they can figure out which temps work best for them. The room temp ranges from 60°-70°. Do you think that’s causing pasty?Your routine sounds fine, it's more time than I spend with chicks and I consider my flock tame enough. Some birds will never like being picked up but as long as they can tolerate handling that's enough for me.
What's your heat source? If using a heat lamp, what's the hot/cold temps inside the brooder? Pasty butt can sometimes be linked to too much heat, so something to consider if it persists as a problem.
You're going to get differing advice on this. I give them grit immediately as they will eat bedding, just a pinch every handful of days on their food. I do not give them unlimited access to it though, to prevent any gorging behavior. Once their older grit is offered free choice.
I put a small amount of grit in their feeder and shake it up so that it’s even distributed. Hopefully that works. I stopped for a day and I have a constipated chick so hopefully she didn’t eat anything bad.