So excited to be a part of this!

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Imhaas2

Imhaas2

Chirping
8 Years
May 22, 2015
11
1
82
Hi, I am just learning all about chickens. Not completely new to it, since in the past I had 7 chickens for a short period of time. I got rid of my chickens because I was traveling too much, but now things have settled down and it was the chickens I missed the most, so I went to our grange and bought 5 chicks. Yahoo, they have been such a delight thus far.
 
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Chickens are like little kids. They will choose to eat their dessert instead of dinner every time. You need to stop giving them treats until they start eating their feed again. Oats will not give them the nutrition they need. If you continue to feed it as a replacement for their feed, it will cause growth problems. Feather picking may start from a lack of protein. And their bones could become malformed. Your chicks will not starve themselves. They will eat their feed if that is all that you provide them to eat.
Grit should always be given when feeding treats.
 
Hi :welcome

Glad you could join the flock! I too agree they will always pick treats over there regular food. Mine don't get their treat untill later on in the day so they have to eat their pellets before hand. Maybe they don't like the feeder you have it in? I know it sounds silly but maybe they are not comfortable eating out of the one you have. Have you checked your feed to make sure it is not mouldy or contaminated? This could also be a cause of them not eating. Do they have access to any else other than their feed? If you are letting them out to free range they may be filling up on all the goodies rather than the feed.

Wishing you the very best of luck with your chicks. Enjoy BYC :frow
 
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Welcome! I think the first thing I'd do is check the freshness of the food. If they were eating fine before and suddenly stopped, you might have some old food. If that's the not the issue, then I'm afraid they may have a serious case of "we got ya where we want ya". You might stop giving them the oatmeal. They'll hate you for awhile, but like two year olds they get over it. Treats should be just that - making up only a small percentage of their diet. Good luck with them.
 
junebuggena said:
Chickens are like little kids. They will choose to eat their dessert instead of dinner every time. You need to stop giving them treats until they start eating their feed again. Oats will not give them the nutrition they need. If you continue to feed it as a replacement for their feed, it will cause growth problems. Feather picking may start from a lack of protein. And their bones could become malformed. Your chicks will not starve themselves. They will eat their feed if that is all that you provide them to eat.
Grit should always be given when feeding treats.
Click to expand...

X 2 -- though it seems you must have edited your post because there is clearly some information missing from what you originally posted.
 
Yorkshire coop said:
Me too!!
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The OP has edited the first post.
Click to expand...
I guess they decided to make a separate thread about it:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/983000/chicks-not-eating-their-starter-feed
 

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