When?help please!!!

[coltsrox]

My 12 week old pullet is on start and grow chick food and they said to put her on it until 20+weeks. She's is not on any vitamins or anything, when do i move her to grown up food?and also i only have 2 chicks so there pets, she's not flock so what kind of start and grow next?
i also heard your supposed to put gravel in her food to make her shells harder.is this true? and if so her and the roo share food, is it ok for him? also what kind of gravel? and when do i start giving it to her?

thanx i need all of these questions anwsered.

 

[soctippy]

The changes from chick food to adult food should be made when the hens start laying. starting laying feed to early is not good for chicks, to much calcium and hormones. Starter is fine it is higher in protein and is a "complete" feed, it has all the vitamins they need in it. you can add gravel to aid in the chickens digestion, they don't have teeth they have crops where they swallow rocks to mash up food. And by offering pebbles free choice, like in their food, they will eat what they need. when they do start laying, you can add oyster shell, also free choice, to their food to make sure the hens get enough calcium to make nice strong eggs.

 

[coltsrox]

do i have to feed them pebbles? and where do i get oyster shells? and when do i give it to her? do i have to give it to them both? and when? after the first egg or 1 week before?

 

[gritsar]

coltsrox, switch her to layer feed at 20 weeks. If you are feeding Purina Start and Grow, the layer feed in that same line is called Layena. Layena is also fine for roosters to eat. You also start giving oyster shell at that time to help with shell-making. Oyster shell is usually sold wherever feed is.
Is your chick eating just start and grow and no treats? Once they begin eating food other than their chick starter/grower, they need grit; which is not the same as oyster shell. You can buy grit seperately and either sprinkle it on their feed or offer it in a seperate dish. When my chicks were very small, I bought the boxes of grit in the pet bird section at the grocery store. Now that they are older, but still don't have access to dirt to find their own grit, I shovel up a large platter of dirt for them and offer it to them while they are out in the yard. First they pick the small pebbles out of it for grit, then they dust bathe in the dirt.

 

[coltsrox]

my babies are only on start and grow but i have in the last 12 weeks of their livves probabbly given them 6 treats, so they need grit? so i can just get a plate of dirt from the ground and give it to them? and that will do?

 

[gritsar]

If you are giving treats then yes they definitely need grit. Do they access to the outside, to do the scratching and pecking in the dirt themselves? I would suggest you get them some grit at the store. It's inexpensive. I use some dirt from here on the farm. I have an area to dig it from where it's full of tiny pebbles and it's from an area where there is little to no traffic, animal, human, or vehicle.

 

[coltsrox]

they don't really have acess about once a week i take them out for exercise. so not really. so buy grit? where can i get it?

 

[S0rcy]

You can get grit from feed stores, pet stores, or just take some dirt and pebbles from your own yard and offer it to them. A shovelful of dirt with grass and roots attached is popular in my friends chicken run

 

[Chirpy]

You can buy grit at any feed store. Just sprinkle some over their food each day or put it in a separate container that they always have access to. (I sprinkled mine on their feed when they were little.)

If they eventually have access to an outside run or if they free range where they are on the ground (dirt) every day then you don't need to supply them grit at that time.

You also buy the oyster shell at feed stores and once you see that first egg then keep it available to them all the time in a separate container. They know how much they need so they will regulate themselves in taking it.

 

[coltsrox]

so do i wait for the first egg to pop out or give it out when they turn 20+ weeks?