Rolled Oats?

[desertgirl]

I wanted to get my week old chicks a treat, and had heard that oatmeal was a good option (not too hard on their little digestive systems).
Went to the Co-op (feels wierd to put a hyphen in that word now!

)., and all I could find was rolled oats and oat bran. Went with rolled oats...is this ok for them?

 

[chickensforever]

That seems pretty young to give treats. I was told to start with hard boiled egg yolks and gradually move on from there. Chickens love rolled oats, but I'd wait a little just to be safe - but I always worry about stuff so they might be just fine.

 

[desertgirl]

Yolk seems like a good idea. I want to have something specia to hand feed the, since withall of this pasty butt cleaning I wouldn't blame them if they hated my guts!

 

[Autumn Mama]

Mine have enjoyed (more like went berserk for, lol!) cooked egg yolk. They had this around the one week mark. Your chicks will *completely* forgive you for pasty-butt cleaning with egg yolk, lol!

At two-three weeks I began to offer a little chopped greens, and at three weeks+ they had outdoor time and found a couple of bugs! Also clover! They love it all, I think moderation is the key, and offer chick grit to them freely,which would be the finest grit.

If you have children, think of it like when they were babies: you'd introduce a new food by adding one new thing, watching for a few days to note any unwanted reactions, and then if all was well, try another.

Think nutritional additions, instead of "treats" and make it a healthy addition to their diet. HTH!! HaAve fun!!1

 

[Autumn Mama]

I forgot to add: they *loved* the small handful of rolled oats I gave them to coax them back into their brooder after being outdoors!