Ok so I know chickens might not be the brightest creatures on the planet, but I've noticed a new and slightly disturbing behavior in my 2-3 week olds. I put down newspaper which I cover with paper towels. Half of the brooder then gets a covering of pine shavings.
The highest ranking pullet (out of 8 hopefully all females) is also a week older, and from day one has eaten a small amount of the pine shavings. The others have picked up a little bit on the habit as when she gets a particularly nice shaving she'll play keep away and egg the others on.
Today I noticed them picking at and pulling up some of the paper towel (blue shop towels) and eating bits of it. I suppose that's a little more safe than the wood chips but still ! They always have plenty of fresh water and starter crumbles, generally yogurt several times a week, and a pan of dirt 2-3 times a week.
Any thoughts on where I went wrong, and how I can fix this ?
The highest ranking pullet (out of 8 hopefully all females) is also a week older, and from day one has eaten a small amount of the pine shavings. The others have picked up a little bit on the habit as when she gets a particularly nice shaving she'll play keep away and egg the others on.
Today I noticed them picking at and pulling up some of the paper towel (blue shop towels) and eating bits of it. I suppose that's a little more safe than the wood chips but still ! They always have plenty of fresh water and starter crumbles, generally yogurt several times a week, and a pan of dirt 2-3 times a week.
Any thoughts on where I went wrong, and how I can fix this ?
