What To feed

[kman cloquet]

I'm sure this question has been asked before but I looked in the archives and had trouble finding it.I just 5 got a 2 week old female baby chicks.I've been feeding them oats dried rice and bread.I just got them today and when I went out to get chick crumbles they only had a 50 lb bag for 80 bucks.I didnt want to get it because i figured It would go to waste. so I have 2 questions do you need to give your baby chicks the crumble can you just give them a mixture of grains and things?If so what do I give them and also do chicks eat coconut and what can they eat because I have lots of things in my house from gram flour to oats?


Thanks
Kman

 

[DawnM]

Where do you live? Here you can get a 25 pound bag of medicated chick feed for $8. I think the 50 pound bags are $15, just like the 50 pound bags of layer and grower feed. Organic is about $5 to $10 more a bag. Maybe you should look for a different feed store, usually chicken feed is cheaper than giving them oats and bread and such.

 

[Nicole01]

That is extremely expensive for starter feed. We buy ours at fleet farm and they have 10 and 50 pound bags. I'd look at another store. The chicks really need the protein and nutrients provided in starter feed. We use medicated starter with vitamins. Its around 12 dollars for a 50lb bag.

 

[kman cloquet]

I live in Nj in an urban area.I am intristed in knowing though if you really need the vrumble because I have lots of food at home going to waste and if my chickens are going to eat it then that would be great.

 

[TexasVet]

Bread is terrible for anybody, especially young chicks, no matter how much they love it~ Most feed stores carry 5-8 lb bags of chick starter... less waste, but more expensive per pound. I also feed mine Purina Flock Raiser, which is non-medicated.

You might also ask the feed store if they have any broken sacks of feed, which are usually around half price.

Kathy in Texas
www.ChickenTrackin.com, www.CountryChickens.com

 

[kman cloquet]

okay

 

[kman cloquet]

It might be a couple of days before I can get crumbles so what do I feed in the mean time.And are you sure you cant substitute something else instead of crumble.

 

[Fred's Hens]

You can get by with chopped up hard boiled eggs, crushed Cheerios, etc. For a balanced diet and proper development, you'll want to get that bag of feed. I know it is an investment to buy a 50# bag, but you can feed it, feed it, feed it. Even if they eat it until they are 12-14 weeks old, that's fine. Keep it dry in a plastic tub with lid or trash can with lid.

 

[Nicole01]

If you can't find it in the store, perhaps you can order it online with fast shipping. A couple days is a long time on oatmeal and eggs. Your chicks may get really hungry and very noisy. My chicks don't waste much food. I feed them several times a day wet starter food as a treat and I give them dry food in their dish. I haven't thrown any unused food and I've bought my first chicks almost a month ago. I really do think it's important to feed them the starter wheather it's medicated or not. However, 80 bucks is extremely high for food. I don't think there is much you can give at this young age. Good luck with this. I hope you do find starter at a reasonable price.

 

[tarragon]

Quote:
If you are serious about taking good care of these animals, then yes, you need to buy them the proper food. Yes, they can eat table scraps, when they are grown and as a supplement to their own food, but this is a helpless,growing baby creature and needs to be cared for as such. It is not a garbage disposal. Chick starter should not be as expensive as what you saw wherever you were shopping, call around to some feed stores and get those poor babies what they need.