When Can They Have Greens?

[AccentOnHakes]

Quote:
The feed is a complete food - no other food is necessary. However, feeding your chicks treats can be fun. After the first week or two, you can give them a worm or a bug or two from your garden to play with and eat. Greens are not recommended because they can cause diarrhea-like symptoms. When droppings are loose, a condition may develop called "pasting up", where droppings stick to the vent area and harden up, preventing the chick from eliminating. Check the chicks for pasting often - if you see this, clean off the vent area (you can use a moist towel or even some mineral oil)

https://www.backyardchickens.com/LC-first60days.html

FYI.... broody hens don't and have never, since they evolved and/or were created, ran to the store to buy 'complete feed' and fed only that to their brood. As of yet, for the record, I have never seen pasting up or pasty butt or loose abnormal stool because my chicks ate grass before whatever schedule says they are supposed to.

Yes if it's the only thing you are feeding them it's a problem but sheesh, it's not against the law of nature to let them have some.

And let's not get me started on the idea of 'complete feed'..........

To the OP, my apologies for causing any problems on your thread!

Nah, it's okay. I know that's what really happens, but then again....

 

[gritsar]

Okay, since we're going on record....
When my chicks first arrived I'd already read up on all the dangers of pasty butt, so I was prepared to wipe baby behinds 24/7 is necessary.
The first time I did wipe a chickie behind though, my DH stopped me. He reminded me that in the commercial houses when they get 20 -30,000 chicks at once, nobody is running around behind them wiping off poop. After that I kept an eye on bottoms for blockage of the vent, but otherwise left their bottoms alone.
Never had a problem.
ETA: KD, while I agree with you about mama hen knowing best and not feeding her chicks "complete feed", when you are new to chickens and unsure about what is okay to feed and what's not, I believe it's easier and safest to steer folks towards the chick starter with a few treats thrown in. If you were to feed chick starter and nothing else, the chicks would do fine. If you were to feed all treats and no starter, you might have a problem. JMHO.

 

[KDbeads]

Quote:
I agree! It's just that so many ask if they can give a few treats here and there and someone comes on here with a 'NO!!! must go by this' type of thing... just bothers me, that's all. And yes I do feed my chicks starter as their main food source, medicated starter at that.... I'm in TX after all, coccidia runs rampant down here

Do not want bloody poo!!

I have to deal with it enough in the rescues I take in

But treats? Yeah mine have a few treats from day one. The favorite being oatmeal with yogurt, followed ever so closely by fresh flowering bur clover and bermuda grass. Hoping I can completely eliminate that bur clover this summer though..... nasty stuff when it seeds out.