When can chicks have veggies?

[Giddyup]

They are on starter chick crumble. When can I give them veggies or grasses?

Once we do, is that when we add grit?

They are very healthy little peeps and not a sign of pasty butt.

 

[Omran]

Quote:
Yes chicks grit with the greens, I let mine start having some grass when they became 3 weeks old.

 

[firedove]

I started my chicks on grit at 5 days old then gave them broccoli buds starting on day 8. The buds are the only veggie they got while they were tiny because the buds are tiny enough for them to eat without the hazard of choking.

They also got plain yogurt starting at 8 days old. They eat it better if you use a drop of food coloring in the big spoonful you give, mix it up so the color is all throughout and they will eat it readily. Red works best. Some people don't need to dye it, but my chicks had no interest in it when it was white.

At 2 weeks old I started giving them bigger bits of broccoli and "spikes" which are a type of fishing worm bait. Much like mealworms but smaller and much cheaper if you can find a bait store that sells them.

Those have been the staple treats. I did give them a small amount of Irish soda bread one day, which they loved, especially the raisins part. They were about 4 weeks at that point.

I would definitely recommend starting them on the grit a day or three before starting them on treats. It gives their body a chance to establish a good system for digestion before you start putting things in that need to be ground up.