When do I feed table scraps and grit to my week old chicks?

[chickybaby1213]

A big big question!! I'm thinking next week. Start them on grit soon before

 

[BYCforlife]

A big big question!! I'm thinking next week. Start them on grit soon before

Exiting!!! I love feeding my chickens treats. After they are a week old it's fine. (at leat what most people say) But remember, in the wild hens used to feed their chicks grass from day one!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

What do you mean by table scraps? Generally for the best growth and development it's best to feed them a starter grower until about 6-8 weeks before introducing small amounts of healthy treats. One thing I feed from the start is scrambled eggs. I don't worry about grit, though most chicks will enjoy a dish of sand to consume some and roll in.

 

[chickybaby1213]

Exiting!!! I love feeding my chickens treats. After they are a week old it's fine. (at leat what most people say) But remember, in the wild hens used to feed their chicks grass from day one!

Thank you very much I will start grit tomorrow and table scrap the next day

 

[BYCforlife]

What do you mean by table scraps? Generally for the best growth and development it's best to feed them a starter grower until about 6-8 weeks before introducing small amounts of healthy treats. One thing I feed from the start is scrambled eggs. I don't worry about grit, though most chicks will enjoy a dish of sand to consume some and roll in.

I am just thinking about broody hens. They give their kids whatever looks yummy, and they grow fine.

I know they won't grow as fast, but if you aren't butchering them I think it would be fine, right?

 

[junebuggena]

You can start them on treats and grit whenever you want to. But you do need to keep in mind that chicks are growing very rapidly and their nutrition is really important and their crops are very small. Give treats mid morning, after they have had a chance to fill up on feed first. And keep the amounts small. No more than a tablespoon per chick.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I think it's more about the balance of nutrition.
If a chicken has access to roam over acres they get to be choosy and feed their chicks the richest foods. They get to go to specific parts of their territory for trace minerals they lack from soils and such. This is especially true since chickens hatch in the spring/summer when bugs and seeds are at their fullest. They get tons of nutrition that way and mama knows what they need and how much.
We're not mama hens with those built in instincts. So we have to rely on other knowledge to make the same choices. So a starter/grower is a very complete food and too many scraps will lead to malnutrition.
But the rule of thumb is pretty simple, no more than 10% of their diet should be snacks. And that's not particularly hard to stick to. Gives you plenty of wiggle room for feeding them.

 

[lazy gardener]

If you are going to give alternate foods, make it count as an improvement on their chick starter. Don't give them something that has very little nutritional content. Good starters:

First of all, give them a plug of sod or a dish of soil from an untreated lawn/garden (no pesticides, herbicides, fungicides) Be sure that the grass on the sod is clipped short. Simply place the sod upside down in their brooder. They will derive all sorts of benefit from this: beneficial microbes to jump start their immune systems. (best to provide it within the first 2 weeks) First grit, minerals, perhaps some worms, seeds, insects, first greens, first dust bath, and much play value.

About the only other treats I give to new chicks: scrambled egg, dandelion greens or lambs quarters.

 

[chickybaby1213]

I have started grit today and i put in the food and a little on the brooder floor as instructed they seem to like it very much.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I am just thinking about broody hens. They give their kids whatever looks yummy, and they grow fine.

I know they won't grow as fast, but if you aren't butchering them I think it would be fine, right?

It's not gonna kill them, but those first months are important for proper development and a healthy long life. As others have said make sure treats are a small portion of their diet.

That being said I always say there isn't one right way to keep and raise chickens, and everyone finds what works best for them. To me that's one of the perks of the hobby.