Wow...50 Chicks Later

[ElioraImmanuel]

Here I was thinking that Friday was chick day...and it wasn't

Thank God my friend said, on Weds, "Are ya ready to pick up all those chicks, tomorrow?"

Oye! No, I wasn't ready! I was exhausted. I'd spent Thurs-Sunday traveling to aquire our alpacas (over 1300 miles driving). Then, we ended up with a surprise boy, which meant an entire barn re-arrange, fencing and getting a male companion...all finished by Weds! Shoooosh, I've never been so tired in all my life. Well....maybe after having my babies.

So, I have my sweet little chick (17 Australorps, 8 Comets, 25 Cornish Cross) all settled in two big boxes so that I can watch them like a good Mama. You should have seen this newbie wrestle w/the new waterers! How funny!

It took my 13 y/o DD, a friend and myself to get the lids on the 1st time.

I have my chickies in boxes w/multiple layers of extra cardboard on the bottom, shredded newspaper on top of that w/their feeder and waterer. They're doing fine on the paper and seem to enjoy it. I'm changing the bedding and extra cardboard, daily and hovering over them. I do have a chick house for them, but I'll keep them in our heated garage, under their heat lamp for as long as I can. I have 10 Ameraucan, 3 Light Brahmas and 5 Golden Laced Wyandottes coming on June 9th. By then, I'll have moved these chicks. The kids adore the chicks! Esp, my 15 month old! He thinks they're his babies! He watches after all our animals and would spend hrs and hrs just looking and cooing over each one of them!

I'm checking the chicks for pasting up and 3 of the Australorps have done so or began to. One of them was completely covered. Once they were cleaned up, my DD says, "It looks like she's kissing with her butt!" ROFLMBO! Now, they're all cleaned up, eating, scratching and sleeping...Aaaaahhhh, Bliss!

 

[suzyq53511]

That is a lot of chicks to look after!

 

[HeatherLynn]

You just made me too sleepy for words. 20 chicks has me ready to roll over and die I am so tired. I cannot imagine 50

 

[4 luv of eggs]

OMG the "butt kissing" comment is hysterical.

I was pulling poopie pasty butt off one of my babies when I first noticed that. I stuck the little chick's butt right in my husband's face and said "Look at this!" It disturbed him.

 

[shellybean40]

I know!! I have 30 right now and I am soooo tired! Off to check on them!

 

[Dora'smom]

Do they have enough space in their boxes? It looks like they are pretty much wing to wing in the pictures.

 

[goldnchocolate]

Hi, I also wondered if they had more space than shows in the pics. That is awfully tight quarters for them. It's very easy to add an "addition" to your box by attaching a second box to the first with some zip-ties and then cutting the walls between the 2 boxes.

I was also wondering if you have any pebble or marbles in the base of the waterer since it isn't a chick waterer and the chicks may get in and drown. Sorry to be so nosy but I would hate for that to happen. This year I had a chick drown in a chick waterer by falling asleep with it's head over the edge into the water

so I even put marbles in the chick waterer even though I had never done that in the past.

Good luck with your chicks---you are going to love having them!

 

[ElioraImmanuel]

We lost two of the Cornish Cross My 7 y/o is soooo upset. I'm going to have to tell the 5 y/o when he gets up from his nap. Bummer.

I had no idea that there was such a thing as a chick waterer. The two we lost didn't drown, though. I was told that it's common to loose 10%. I don't think the kids can take loosing 5! My DD went to get her marbles. How am I going to cope when they're not being monitored 24/7?!

They've been moved into two giant totes w/lots more room. They're eating and drinking a ton! I'm changing the water 2 times daily.

 

[goldnchocolate]

Here is the base for the chick waterer:
http://www.cutlersupply.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=11_60_61&products_id=847

I also have these half gallon jars that fit the above mentioned waterer base:
http://www.cutlersupply.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=11_60_61&products_id=844

The base will also fit on any sized Mason Jar.

If you get a couple of bricks or blocks of wood to raise your waterer up off the floor of your brooder the chicks don't dirty it as much as when the waterer is on the floor. It sure is a pain to change their water only to have them fill it up with shavings almost as soon as you turn your back

 

[felidaet]

They can drown in chick waterers. Marbles or rocks the size of marbles should be use in ANY waterer for the first week or so.