Treats for 25 day old chicks

[Lrajos4]

What treats can I give my almost 4 week old chicks? they have grit...

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I like to start mine out with a little dried mealworms. I always call them the way I call my older flock, or the way I'm going to call them as adults, to train them to come to my voice, as I sprinkle the worms about their brooder. Not too many!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It's best to wait until they are a bit older for most things. I do give scrambled eggs and it seems to help them grow, and feather more quickly. It takes about 3 times offering before they really start to go crazy for them. They can give them a bit more stinky poops, so hopefully yours are outside.

 

[Lrajos4]

I like to start mine out with a little dried mealworms. I always call them the way I call my older flock, or the way I'm going to call them as adults, to train them to come to my voice, as I sprinkle the worms about their brooder. Not too many!

Where do u get them from?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Where do u get them from?

Feed store. Tractor Supply, Rural King, Bomgaar's, any of those. Sometimes Walmart has them.

 

[Ridgerunner]

What treats can I give my almost 4 week old chicks? they have grit...

Yes, the grit is important.

My broody hens take their chicks our foraging very shortly after she brings them off of the nest, usually within three days. The chicks peck at the ground and get grit, vegetative matter, bugs, or whatever they can find. So your 4-week-olds can certainly have treats.

If their feed is a standard balanced diet they do not need treats. It will not hurt them to have some as long as it is not enough to mess up the balanced diet they get from their feed. If they can clean the treat up in 10 to 20 minutes you should be fine. If it takes longer than that it could be too much. Think of it as kids with ice cream or candy. A few bites won't hurt them but if it becomes a major portion of their diet it can. Even if it is a "healthy" treat, if they eat too much they may not be getting enough of other nutrients they need.

So what can they have as treats? Almost anything they will eat. If you feed them greens they need to be in fairly small chunks. Long strands can get twisted up in their crop and cause problems. That stuff gets ground up in their gizzard which is past their crop. Grit does not prevent an impacted crop.

You sometimes read to not feed them white potatoes. White potatoes are not the problem, the problem comes in when the potatoes get sunburned and turn green. Green potatoes are poisonous.

Tomatoes and pepper fruits are fine, but the leaves of those plants are poisonous to them. One bite will not kill them but too much can cause problems.

Some typical treats are cooked eggs, yogurt, and various veggies. They can eat grain seeds, at 4 weeks they should be able to handle about any grain. Various worms and insects are OK. They are omnivores, they can eat meat. I'd avoid highly salty foods. Making a paste out of their regular feed by adding water is often seen by them as a treat. Does not upset their balanced diet at all.

Again, the idea is to limit their intake of any one thing (good or bad) so it does not upset their balanced diet they get from their feed.

 

[Lrajos4]

Feed store. Tractor Supply, Rural King, Bomgaar's, any of those. Sometimes Walmart has them.

Thank you!

 

[Lrajos4]

Yes, the grit is important.

My broody hens take their chicks our foraging very shortly after she brings them off of the nest, usually within three days. The chicks peck at the ground and get grit, vegetative matter, bugs, or whatever they can find. So your 4-week-olds can certainly have treats.

If their feed is a standard balanced diet they do not need treats. It will not hurt them to have some as long as it is not enough to mess up the balanced diet they get from their feed. If they can clean the treat up in 10 to 20 minutes you should be fine. If it takes longer than that it could be too much. Think of it as kids with ice cream or candy. A few bites won't hurt them but if it becomes a major portion of their diet it can. Even if it is a "healthy" treat, if they eat too much they may not be getting enough of other nutrients they need.

So what can they have as treats? Almost anything they will eat. If you feed them greens they need to be in fairly small chunks. Long strands can get twisted up in their crop and cause problems. That stuff gets ground up in their gizzard which is past their crop. Grit does not prevent an impacted crop.

You sometimes read to not feed them white potatoes. White potatoes are not the problem, the problem comes in when the potatoes get sunburned and turn green. Green potatoes are poisonous.

Tomatoes and pepper fruits are fine, but the leaves of those plants are poisonous to them. One bite will not kill them but too much can cause problems.

Some typical treats are cooked eggs, yogurt, and various veggies. They can eat grain seeds, at 4 weeks they should be able to handle about any grain. Various worms and insects are OK. They are omnivores, they can eat meat. I'd avoid highly salty foods. Making a paste out of their regular feed by adding water is often seen by them as a treat. Does not upset their balanced diet at all.

Again, the idea is to limit their intake of any one thing (good or bad) so it does not upset their balanced diet they get from their feed.

I appreciate this so much thank you!

 

[Sally PB]

One "treat" that you never have to worry about feeding is their regular feed with a bit of water mixed in to make it a mash. I make mine about the consistency of cookie dough. When the chicks are little, I'll put a bit in the palm of my hand. Eventually, one of them will be brave enough to peck at it.

"Hey, everybody! Look what I found! It's really neat food!" nom nom nom nom.

It's also a great way to use up the bits that end up at the bottom of the bowl, that the birds don't seem to want to eat.

Mash snack is still my chickens' favorite "treat." And they're 2-5 years old.

 

[AntiqueB]

^This^
I used mash to get them back into their run as chicks. They liked it better than mealworms.