What to feed my Cornish Cross

[Raptor Mountain Farm]

Ok, I am quite new and have read many threads. So much so, that I am now completely confused. I have Cornish Cross that are probably about 1 wk old. I have read don't feed medicated food or give vitamins in water vs it's ok. Feed 20%+ protein starter/grower vs feed 30% game bird starter. I will list what I have and if you wiser peeps could tell me what to do and if I need to buy anything or when I should switch feed, I would greatly appreciate it.
18% MannoPro chick medicated starter/grower feed.
20% Dumor chick starter grower.
29.64% Farmers Helper UltraKibble for Chicks (about 1 lb left).
19% New Country Organic grower/broiler.
8% 5 grain scratch.
Sprouted scratch grain and lentils.
Lots of dried mealworms.
I also have Rooster Booster Vitamins & Electrolytes with Lacto Bacillus in one waterer.
I already ferment food for my 6 wk old dual purpose chicks. I am willing to mix different ones together. I am also not against giving them shredded pork/turkey/pork burgers, etc.
So, please advise me on what to feed them. Right now I have 2 feeders with the 20% starter/grower with some 18% medicated chick starter/grower spread as scratch and mixed in one feeder.

 

[Raptor Mountain Farm]

Oh, I also have a question about using a red light on them. And some say have light on them 24/7?

 

[lil_nyixx]

Make sure that you use chick grit for the mealworms so it won’t get stuck in their crop.

 

[Raptor Mountain Farm]

Yep, have that too. I also give fresh celery leaves, spinach, and mint to my older chicks.
Should I switch to grower at 2/3 weeks old as they mature faster?

 

[springvalley123]

I would get them some 24% starter. If they're healthy and no concerns about coccidiosis (bad/smelly/runny stools etc) I wouldn't seek out medicated, but if that's the only 24% I'd get it. These meat birds grow quickly (8 weeks to finish total) so they need the 24%. I wouldn't give them anything else to eat. You might have to pull the feed overnight once they get a few weeks old to prevent their bodies from outgrowing their legs' ability to support their weight and to help prevent heart and other issues they can get due to their fast growth. And the red light is for heat, not light, so they need that 24/7--you'll have to adjust it as they grow and as ambient temperatures also change. Best of luck!

 

[Raptor Mountain Farm]

I would get them some 24% starter. If they're healthy and no concerns about coccidiosis (bad/smelly/runny stools etc) I wouldn't seek out medicated, but if that's the only 24% I'd get it. These meat birds grow quickly (8 weeks to finish total) so they need the 24%. I wouldn't give them anything else to eat. You might have to pull the feed overnight once they get a few weeks old to prevent their bodies from outgrowing their legs' ability to support their weight and to help prevent heart and other issues they can get due to their fast growth. And the red light is for heat, not light, so they need that 24/7--you'll have to adjust it as they grow and as ambient temperatures also change. Best of luck!

The yellow thing is the chick heater plate. You adjust the legs up as they grow to lessen the heat. I read too many horror stories about heat lamps. So my chick heater and cool heaters are radiant heaters. I can touch them and they don't burn the chicks or me. So they do have heat 24/7.
Ok on the 24% protein. They have runny poop, but not stinky. Some are getting more solid poop.
With the light, some say to have light for 14+ hrs to 24/7. What do you think about that?

 

[NatJ]

The yellow thing is the chick heater plate. You adjust the legs up as they grow to lessen the heat. I read too many horror stories about heat lamps. So my chick heater and cool heaters are radiant heaters. I can touch them and they don't burn the chicks or me. So they do have heat 24/7....
With the light, some say to have light for 14+ hrs to 24/7. What do you think about that?

If they have heat 24/7, and they are at least a few days old already, then they should be fine with some darkness at night to sleep. I'm guessing 12-16 hours of light each day would probably be a good amount--and it can be white light, no need for red, if it's just so they can see in the daytime.

You might have to pull the feed overnight once they get a few weeks old to prevent their bodies from outgrowing their legs' ability to support their weight and to help prevent heart and other issues they can get due to their fast growth.

Or if they have darkness at night, they will probably sleep then instead of eating, so you will get the same effect without actually taking away the food.

 

[Raptor Mountain Farm]

If they have heat 24/7, and they are at least a few days old already, then they should be fine with some darkness at night to sleep. I'm guessing 12-16 hours of light each day would probably be a good amount--and it can be white light, no need for red, if it's just so they can see in the daytime.


Or if they have darkness at night, they will probably sleep then instead of eating, so you will get the same effect without actually taking away the food.

I have them set up in the living room and I slept out there last night. I had left the red light on for them to test it out. I only heard them once during the night. So, this morning (4:30 am is when I get up) I turned off the red light. Of course everyone had to wake up and get their breakfast. LOL I don't think I'll use the light on them anymore. I think they are close to a week old as some already are getting feathers.
Thank you everyone for your help!

 

[Raptor Mountain Farm]

They grew today! LOL

 

[Chris2018]

This will give you a idea how I feed my Broilers and Cornish Crosses.

The feeds I use Prestarter 30% protein, Starter, 26% protein, Grow-Fin 22% protein

Week One - Prestarter (30% Protein)
Week Two - 10 lbs Prestarter 10 lbs Starter (28% Protein)
Week Three - 3 lbs Prestarter 17 lbs Starter (26.50% Protein)
Week Four - 15 Lbs Starter 5 lbs Grow-Fin (25% Protein)
Week Five - 8 Lbs Starter 12 Lbs Grow-Fin (23.50% Protein)
Week Six to processing - 20 Lbs Grow-Fin (22% Protein)

Here is my lighting schedule for Broilers.

Day 0-3 24 hours of light
Day 4-7 18 hours of light
Day 8-14 14 hours of light
Day 15-22 16 hours of light
Day 23-28 18 hours of light
Day 29 to processing 22 hours of light

Lighting for Cornish Cross.

First day 23 hours of light
Day 2 20 hours of light
Day 3-4 18 hours of light
Day 5-14 6 hours of light
Day 15-21 10 hours of light
Day 22-28 14 hours of light
Day 29-35 16 hours of light
Day 36-42 18 hours of light
Day 43-49 20 hours of light
Day 50-56 22 hours of light
Day 57 to processing 24 hours of light