Topic of the Week - Raising Chicks

[shoaibbandukda]

hello
i had a four chicks which are 2 months old , one of them is no more

, he was suffering with newcasttel deases he stoped eating and drinking , now i have 3 left 2 male chicks 1 female , they are taking long breath and open mouth everytime and for longtime .. i give them wheat, millet , glucose water, plain water, onion , sometime pieces of chicken meat and they love to eat chicken meat.
now iam scared for losing them . kindly guide me what i should do now, what i should give them feed and open mouth and long breath is normal? ... waiting for your reply

 

[Jimberly]

They like a little roost even when they are little.

I have three day old chicks. When is a good time to put a little roost in?

 

[EvolveInNature]

I'm new here! Hello everyone. So we went and got some straight run chicks and I've had them for 2 days. I feel like we already have a dominant rooster. He is larger than the rest of the birds and he will peck at you if you try to put your hands in the cage. He also will give the chicks I put back in the cage a little peck once they are returned. Does any bird do this or is this most likely a roo?

I’m new also, and I chose 1 rooster and 13 hens, I am amazed they seem to have gotten it correct, because I’m seeing the same behavior in my rooster. It is unbelievable how he already looks over his flock. I’m not sure if I might have one more or the dominant hen is already established also. This is truly an incredible aspect of nature to watch.

 

[Clodill4rel]

It's Chick Time and BYC suddenly awakens with eager newcomers seeking the sage advice of those who've been there before them. Getting those cute, tiny, helpless fluff balls can be very anxiety provoking. You just look at them and think, one false move and they're done for.


- What preparations do you make before hatching/buying chicks?

So you prepare. That means studying up on what things chicks require for safety, proper development, and over-all well being. Most people automatically think chicks are so fragile they need to be kept indoors in a box with a hot light on them, with a thermometer hung inside like an oven thermostat lest the tinys suffer a little cool-off and fall like a cake in an undependable oven.

Then later on, they are overwhelmed by the constant chirping, poop odors and dander and dust. "When can they move outdoors?" is the common question on the chick forum a few weeks into chick season. Well, I say move them outdoors from the very start!

I brood outdoors now. Gosh, it's so much better for everyone, especially the chicks. They start out where they're going to end up anyway, and there's no stressful adjustment later. They are installed with the adult flock and are accepted as members of the flock early on, making integration a breeze.

I use the heating pad system so no dangers of overheating, and the chicks establish natural day/night sleep patterns, contributing to their well-being. They harden off early to cooler temps, therefore they need no acclimatizing later on. And best of all, you have a clean house with no greasy dander to hunt down and clean up.

- Tell me about your brooder(s); Also, do you brood indoors or outdoors?

I section off a safe chick pen in the run. My run is covered and the sides are protected from the wind and weather. The chicks have their heating pad cave for warmth, and even when it's freezing at night and only in the 50s(F) during the day, they're just fine and manage to warm up when they need to.

They are growing up in proximity to the adults and learning every single minute from observing them. By the time they are given access at age two weeks by means of portals from their chick pen, they already understand which adults needs to be given a wide birth and which ones can be trusted.




By age five weeks, they are finished with their heating pad and can move into the coop with the big chickens. This method of brooding is so effortless and natural, it's really catching on here in the BYC community. I anticipate the day when plastic tote brooders with heat lamps will be laughed off the pages.

- How to raise healthy, strong chicks. (Supplements/Feed/Heat management, etc)

On day one, the chicks get Poultry Nutri-drench as a precaution and nutritional boost to combat any shipping stress and to get them off to a good start. I make a weak "tea" from it and the chicks drink it for their first week or so.

I feed my chicks fermented feed, but to start them off, I sprinkle dry crumbles on the ground to get them to want to eat. They scratch around and eat what they find and quickly graduate to the FF. I've found that, since chicks have a proclivity to swim in their food, a tiny container no more than a couple inches in diameter is best. I use the plastic cups the icing comes in that you get with those tubes of breakfast sweet rolls and I glue metal washers to the bottom to give them weight .

Growing up outdoors in proximity to the adult flock is the best way to insure healthy chicks since they are picking up immunities from their environment against disease, making them more disease resistant. Chicks brooded indoors miss this valuable "window", which closes after the first couple weeks. Chicks raised outdoors feather out quicker and are more cold hardy because of it. Best of all, there is very little stress involved as the chicks are integrated into the flock.

We are as a family into our second year and have recently hatched some new chicks actually two different batches one under a broody hen that we separated after all the chicks were born from our small (6) flock. We kept them in a new separate made coop we built with wire in between so the other hens and Roo are able to hear and see the babies with our broody hen. We as of today took our week old incubator chicks and have prepared them another area separate from the week older broody hens chicks where they are still connected but unable to actually be combined. I am very nervous about how to integrate all of these and weather or not our year old hens n Roo will take in any of them. Today seemed to go well with our broody hen and the babies since they ran all over on the ground only one of our hens seemed a bit too intrested in them but mama broody seemed to know exactly what to do. The problem I encountered is ……when I tried to show kiwi one of the incubator chicks she was NOT havin it at all. They are only 6 days apart….. she didn’t accept them and that’s fine but how the heck do I get to that point? I have a lot of learning and research to do ! Maybe you could help
Point us in the right direction. We are building another connected separate coop incase and for separation of Roos later since I know we are going to have a few…..

 

[Clodill4rel]

Nowadays I only use broody mamas, which pretty much takes care of getting them started right in all ways, but before that and when I had chicks to brood without a mama, I did the following:

I brood the chicks right in the coop and right on the same deep litter my flock has been using.





I integrate them with the flock at 2 wks if they don't have a mama and at one week if they do have a mama. I get them out on range at that same age...the quicker they are exposed to the flock's pathogens and the soil's pathogens, the stronger their immune system.




I use a hay bale brooder setup, which makes it highly adjustable for number of chicks, for when they grow and for ambient temps. These chicks are being brooded in an open air hoop coop in 30-40 daytime temps and 20s at night....






I use fermented feed from day one also.




I no longer place ACV in the water as the FF has all they'll need in the way of dietary acid and probiotics. I use nipple buckets for broodies and chicks, as they are just cleaner and puts less moisture into the bedding. With broodies and chicks I use the bucket below...it has vertical nipples on the bottom for chicks and a side cup nipple for the hen...as you can see, I use bricks under it for the chicks to stand on so I can keep the bucket high enough to escape the scratching of the bedding by the hen. If I don't do that the nipple cup will soon fill with kicked up bedding.






I don't use a heat lamp any longer...I use a heating pad brooder setup so they are warmed as much as possible as they would if they were under a broody mama. They adjust to cooler temps faster, they don't develop pasty butt, they feather out faster and they get darkness for sleeping...this increases their melatonin uptake, which is an important chemical for the immune system function(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3645767/).





When I did use a heat lamp, I made sure to keep the brooder size big enough for the chicks to escape the heat of the lamp by providing a cool side and a warm side....water is kept on the cool side and the feed kept half way between the heat and the cool. When using a heat lamp, I always make sure to secure that lamp in three ways so that if the clamp fails, I still have two secure points insuring the lamp cannot come in contact with the brooder walls, bedding or anything else. This can be done with simple zip ties and baling twine on the lamp head and also the lamp wire. Always secure that lamp...can't stress that enough. Check the bulb for a secure screw in and for dust...keep it clean.






Preparations before a broody hatch include preparing individual nesting sites on the ground level for the broodies in the maternity ward. Then moving them and their eggs, under cover of darkness, to their nests. A cardboard box upturned over the nest or closing off the front of the nest box for the next day usually keeps the hen settled on the new nest site. Then it's just feed and water and let the broodies do all the work.









These two wanted to share a brood and that went very well....I'm not always successful at keeping them apart.



Then out on range after the first week and they go off into the wild green yonder. After that the broody decides when to integrate them with the flock, shows them when and how to roost, and weans them when they are ready...average is about 2 mo.

Wow so informative I really appreciate that! So after one week u introduce and let mama do her job……… I am so nervous to do this and other tips? I also have a batch of incubated ones that are 6 days from our broody hens chicks. Broody has 10 incubator group has 12……. Broody hen did not like the chicks two days ago when I tried to introduce them to her at all. I feel like mama know what she is doing and with us she’s amazing so do I let her out with them for a few days and than let our 4 hens and one too out to see what happens on our property or ????

 

[BDutch]

Raising chicks with a broody is much easier than raising chicks yourself in a brooder with heating.
Pro’s:

• The mama keeps the chicks warm.
• The mama calls the chicks to come to the nest before sunset. They dont need artificial light.
• The mama teaches them al kind of things. About other food than the manufactured feed, about dangers and sleeping on a roost when the chicks are old enough (approx 6 weeks).
• Integrating in a flock with adult hens is easier too because the mama protects the chicks if she can.

Of course you need a hen that is committed (not al breeds are fit for this job).
Cons:

• The broody stops laying egg for about 3 months.
• Because the chicks get handled less they become less tame.

 

[PippinTheChicken]

- What preparations do you make before hatching/buying chicks?
I make sure I have all the supplies prepared and have an integration plan.

- Tell me about your brooder(s); Also, do you brood indoors or outdoors?
I use a heat lamp, thermometer and hemp bedding all the way through. But I use shallow ceramic dishes for food and water when they are young, then move on to mini feeders/waterers. I start with a small brooder: either a plastic storage tub (for flying chicks) or a wooden box (for non-flying chicks) then move them on to THE MEGA BROODER!
I brood indoors in the guest room

starter brooder:

mega brooder:

- How to raise healthy, strong chicks. (Supplements/Feed/Heat management, etc)
As they grow up, I raise the heat lamp until I just remove it. I feed chick crumb all the way through (I never use "growers feed"). Weaklings get hand fed (eggs) and watered.

Anything you'd like to add?
If you ever need any chick-raising advice...
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...lped-hatching-and-saving-baby-chicks.1510689/

 

[HennyPenny2019]

This is my brooder. But it is based on theoretical knowledge only

. I have it in our below ground basement where the temperature is constantly 55 degrees and with the lamp I can get it up to 95 degrees inside the brooder. Under the pine shavings is a folded tarp so when I need to "change the diapers" I can just fold it up and take it to our compost heap. We are preparing for 8 chicks and this is our first time having chickens. We are very excited!

Am I missing anything?!?

New chicks are SO exciting! I’m also getting a few new to add to my girls. I use the “broody hen method” not sure if that the right name. Saw it on here when I first joined 3 yrs ago. Worked GREAT! Built from wire fence with a heating pad an most important is the Press ‘n Seal.

 

[Hermits Garden]

Today is ship day for my order. So...dealing with it. They'll brood in the house for five or so days--hubs has a knee surgery, so I need to keep operations in the house for a bit. Then off to their coop/pen. This enclosure is in my work room, so I can close pets out of it, and it has good natural light. Woohoo! First chickens!

 

[Ons3Saam]

G'day mates.

I know this is a hatching video but I've deleted all the photos off my phone. At the 1:17 mark there is some photos and a brief description of our outdoor brooder. It's autumn here now and night time temps fall to about 6 degrees Celsius but the chicks are fine. Being outdoors makes them more resilient and makes the transfer to the big coop so much easier.

Have a wonderful day further,
Ons3Saam