What can I feed baby chicks until I can get out to get some Chick Starter?

[Klutch]

layer isn't good for chicks...way to much calcium can damage organs and also posssibly kill them as their little bodies cant handle the extra calcium. i wouldnt do it.

Good to know. Thanks!

 

[fortyfivefarm]

Gamebird crumble is also a good option. I actually use it instead of chick starter and have very good results.

 

[dermerchickens]

Can I feed 4 day old chicks worms? They 'fought' over a couple stinkbugs in their pen earlier....

 

[AmandaChick]

I ran out of starter once and used eggs but I used the whole egg shell and all the shell acts like grit. Very hard boiled eggs put into food processor.

 

[cheeka]

Can I feed 4 day old chicks worms? They 'fought' over a couple stinkbugs in their pen earlier....

meal worms yes. earthworms IMHO no. too parasitic for such young'uns... grubs are good if you can dig them up...

 

[dermerchickens]

Okay, when can i feed them worms I find outside? They are 5 days old to today.. Discovered shavings.. Rowdy little bunch!!! Oh, and they are Buff Orpingtons.

Oh, not related to feed question- Can I find out their gender now? and Are all baby chicks yellow? Mine are, does that mean they will be yellow forever?


Thanks!

-Emma

 

[cheeka]

this is a buff orp hen. yellow chicks can feather out to white, buff... a mix... that's part of the fun of watching them feather out... now Easter Eggers are another story... you never know what they will look like from chick to adult. identical chicks will not be identical as adults. your buff orps will all look very similar to one another... as for feeding them earthworms and such that you can dig up in your yard... there is always a risk for parasites, but that doesn't stop them from digging them up and gobbling them down! chop them up good and feed away... just watch their poops. Broody Mama's will feed their tiny chicks all kinds of stuff - they just tear it to bits for them first... I've watched my Peach feed her chicks frogs, grubs, worms and stuff I provide like fruits. she always tears it up first.

eta, probably too young to sex now... looking inside the vent for the little "pimple" isn't easy... wait a few weeks for comb development or certain feathers to appear...

 

[dermerchickens]

Thanks! Is that your hen? I was like 'I don't want them all to be yellow!' When I got them! lol

So I could feed them worms, grubs stuff like that if I 'chop' it up. They 'fought' over a stinkbug today... I purchased chick grit for them and sprinkled some on their food. Should I give that for a couple days before worms, grubs, ect.?


Will they all have 'spurs' when they are little, is there a way I can sex them from that even though they are 5 days old?

They are chirpping right now!
Thanks!

 

[cheeka]

yes, she's mine.

you can let them peck at stuff... but it's easier for them if it's chopped. grit is something that should always be available. since they've been eating it for a couple of days already, they can eat lots of different small seeds.

spurs don't develop til much later and they don't get to be much more than a bump or little poke til they are nearing or over a year. most females don't develop true spurs, but some do. not usable (that I know of) for sexing chicks.

you need to be patient. sometimes they will show their gender by roughly 4 weeks. sometimes 10 weeks... there are breeds such as Silkies that can take several months. enjoy the chickies - this stage doesn't last long at all... once they start developing body feathers... look for red splotches on the "shoulders" to indicate males, comb developments... fast or slow feather growth... join us over at Should I Buy Eggs or Wait it Out thread, and share some pics...

 

[RoosterRod]

My mom always took corn meal,old fashion oat meal,boiled egg yokes and put them in an empty bread sack and crushed everything all up together and she would feed this to her baby chicks for the first week to give them a head start in life. She would raise 1500 chicks at a time and she never had any raising them this way. Hope this helps-RoosterRod