treats for chicks..when?

[mandapanda3186]

Just wondering at what age you can start to give treats. And what is best. I know chickens eat pretty much any and all scrap food but what is a common favorite? Also is there anything to avoid? Chicks are only 2 days old..but just trying to prepare

 

[kla37]

Some cooked crumbled egg yolks would be a great treat. If you feed them anything fibrous, make sure they have chick-sized grit to go with it. I had trouble finding some, so I used well rinsed sand.

 

[Pele]

Yes your chicks are old enough to gobble whatever they find that's smaller than they are

. I gave mine small peices of wheat bread, meal worms, grapes, yogurt, and clumps of dirt with worms in it. They go crazy for any and all of the above as soon as they are 24 hours old. Just size your tidbits appropriately because their eyes are definitely bigger than their stomachs!

Also, it's good to add grit into their diets as early as possible in case they eat something they shouldn't (mine ate some hair they found somewhere). Parakeet grit works well, though a lot of folks tell you it has too much calcium (never hurt my chicks to eat it), you can also use sandbox grade play sand, which is very fine.

 

[dbounds10]

Mine have been getting treats since about 6 days old when I got them. They love mashed boiled eggs and meal worms. They also like it when I pick dandilions and chop them up with the food processor. I have not been able to find "chick sized" grit. So I got some regular size granite grit and just smash it with a hammer and also bring in dirt clods and sand from the yard. They love that also.