spoiled chicks

[amydzek]

my chicks are spoiled... they only eat a few things.. everything else they turn their beaks up at! so far they eat hard boiled eggs, cottage cheese and hamburger and potato mixed together.... and hints on getting them to try other treats?? like the bread that has been there for a week or the tomatoes and cucumbers and scraps I have been trying to give them!!!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

How old are they?

 

[amydzek]

they are just little still... 6ish weeks old....they LOVE cottage cheese and hard boiled eggs (which I still think is wrong) but they dont eat any of the leafy greens and everything else that other people say their chicks eat...

 

[centrarchid]

What kind of chicks are they?

Are you feeding them any type of grain / seed or other feed made for chickens?

 

[Kassaundra]

Mine are the same age and are EE and they eat everything I give them. They have free access to chick start and this past week to the grass outside. I have been giving them treats since they were about 4 days old, all soft for the first 3 wks, then adding other veggies and such w/ grit. I would say keep trying, there was only one thing the girls wouldn't eat the first time, yogourt, but after I offered a few times now they eagerly eat it. I have seen several posts w/ people saying their chickens are picky eaters, but I don't know if it is a breed thing or what.

 

[sharol]

OK, let's be serious here. Are they eating their chick starter (that is designed for small chickens so that they will get all the nutrients they need to grow up healthy)?

Are they growing? Are they active? Are they driving you absolutely nuts in the brooder?

Maybe they don't need the treats yet.

Sorry. Mine didn't like treats (except for bits of tomato) either. Now (at 16 weeks) they are eating me out of house and home. So far the only thing they have turned their beaks up at is raw squash and cabbage.

 

[maizey]

mine would only eat their starter when they were less than 4 weeks (except for bugs, always love bugs), now they are getting less picky and have FINIALLY started eating yougurt and sunflower seeds...but they still don't eat everything you'd think a chicken would... turned up their beaks at oatmeal..and it even had cinnamon in it.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I always find that my chicks don't get interested in treats until around a couple of months. They actually walk past them. This is not just one set of chicks- it is several.

I wouldn't worry if they are eating their main dish of grower feed.

 

[centrarchid]

My chicks, also based on multiple broods, initially target high protein foods. Especially those based on animal protein (insects). As they increase in size (4 weeks) they start eating tender green plant parts. This is time the cecum starts to ferment plant cellulose and possibly insect chitin into usuable energy.

My summer free ranging broods when greater than 4 weeks get all the insects they want. They seem to seek out sweets like berries and cracked corn. Broods starting later in fall seem to seek out insects more since vegetative plant parts and grains dominate diet at this time. This has been working to my benefit in respect to training.

 

[Cluckn Crazy]

My girls are about 7 weeks. Just started trying different veggies, but always ate seeds and oats (and bugs!). They clincher is all treats need to be chopped up, otherwise they won't touch it. I'm sure this will change as they grow. Good luck!