Shavings For My Chicks? What To Do?

[tigerkitten45]

My little ones are 5 days old and i just changed their brooder, had them on pine shavings covered with paper towels until now, gonna let them try the shavings, so far they are doing well with it, lol, experience must have wore them out they are all spread out now sleeping like angels

 

[Backyard_Chicken_rancher]

First newspaper IS NOT a good thing to use for the first week if you want to cover the shavings use shelf liner wal-mart sells it in rolls use this over your shavings for the first week then remove it and the mess goes with it shvings should always be pine NEVER CEDER!!!
The pine shavings they do eat but only once or twice until they learn it does not have the same taste as the food but then they do play in with it by running around with a scrap of it in there mouth while the others give chase but it's cool because this is one of the many games they play.
If you use paper towels they will eat them after awhile you only use the towels for the first week til they learn where their food and water is afetr that your good.

I hope this helps and good luck to you.

 

[Smoky73]

I just use their starter as their bedding. yes, I know they poop in it, but as everyone knows, chicks will poop in their food dish too so really no biggie. I just spread a layer of starter about 2 inches deep and they scratch through it and its all for them to eat. When it get stoo poopy (they scratch to the bottom anyway) I use a dust pan and brush off the top layer. Also nice and warm on their tootsies. I have been doing this for the last two years after trying newspapers, rubber shelf liner, wood shavings and sand. This is by far the easiest, a well known show breeder taught me this.

 

[cheshie]

Okay, I would like some opinions on the subject of bedding. I went to the pet store the other day to buy pine shavings, but found an alternative that I liked better. It is Kaytee Soft-Sorbent, and the product is made from the wood fibers that are not suitable for paper products. It is fragrance free and does not contain any pine or cedar aromatic oils. It says that it is for any type of pet home, and even specifically mentions using it in nesting boxes and baby bird nurseries. Do you think that this product is okay to use for my baby chicks (pullets)? My only concern is that it almost looks like their food, and I am afraid they will eat it. On the other hand, I would assume it doesn't taste the same, but unless someone would like to volunteer to do a taste test, I won't know for sure...LOL.

I am currently using disposable, extra absorbent underpads, like they use in hospitals, as the "bedding". This gives them a soft surface that has good traction, and they can't really eat it. The other day I poured some of the Soft-Sorbent over the underpad and they immediately began trying to eat. Of course new mommy panic set in and I immediately removed it for fear of them damaging their sensitive baby digestive tracks. They are 4-5 days old and I'm not quite sure what to do. Should I wait a few more days and then put it in and hope they don't get sick? I am worried that they will eat too much bedding and that they won't get enough nutrients (due to not eating enough real food). Any opinions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[zade11]

when i got five more chicks after my first one i put them down on shaving right away. Worked fine.

 

[Kiwibird]

Here is another recent thread with lots of ideas:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=306345&p=1

 

[perched]

I used a mix of paper towel, absorbent bird cage liners and grit paper for bird cages. It worked out really well both times we had chicks, and it is really cute seeing them pick at the grit paper, which is great for traction btw. I also put a good sized stick in there to help them learn how to perch and give them added leg strength. It was so neat watching them on the stick. It also gave them something to do. Hope these tips help you!

 

[WoodlandWoman]

By the time they have been eating their food for a week, they should be good at eating it. They will have learned that the chick starter in the feeders is food and be in the habit of eating it. Although they may sample some of the shavings at first, they shouldn't eat a lot of them, if they eat any at all. When they first come out of the shell, they just don't know WHAT they should be eating. They'll try whatever is there and some may over eat non-food items.

I've gone to skipping the shavings the first week and just using the paper towels, as I find that easier. When I want to switch them over to shavings, I put the shavings in and cover them with the paper towels for a day or so. Then I take the paper towels out. It seems to work fine for the chicks. Everybody has their favorite way to do things and lots of them work just fine. This is just what I do.

I don't think there's anything wrong with using newspapers underneath the paper towels. You just don't want to use the newspapers alone, because they are more slippery. Some chicks can develop leg problems. Paper towels over newspaper isn't much different than just using the paper towels alone, which a lot of people do. The chicks are still standing on the paper towels, which have more traction for them.

As they get larger and poop more, I think you are definitely going to want to switch over to shavings or you are going to have a smelly mess. They grow really fast and so does all that poop.

Shavings have a lot more surface area and it will all get mixed together as they walk around. You can also sprinkle some clean shavings on top, between cleanings, if you want. I do, since they are sleeping on the shavings.

 

[kasey08]

i'm using ceder and its my first time with chicks is that bad?

 

[cheshie]

Kasey08 - Cedar is not good for the chickens. Most sites that I have seen state to use pine or aspen...but never cedar. Good luck!