day old chick feeding

[vader123]

What do I feed my day old chicks on as new to poultry incubation also how long do they need to stay indoors as eggs have been incubated at home

[wildwood]

To be honest, you should really have though about that before they hatched. However, grain stores and the better pet shops sell broken mixed grain especially for chicks. There is also a ground mash available just for chicks. You can also buy maggots as an occasional treat, which they'll love. Some green vegies/weeds to pick on and renewed daily should see them grow up just fine. Ofcourse, oyster grit should always be available. You also need to provide them with a varied assortment of small grit/stones - for this, coarse riversand used for plastering over concrete is ideal and nearly free. This aids the gizzard with grinding up the seeds, without which they can not get enough nourishment out of the seed before it passes through their digestive system.

They really need a heat lamp over them until they have a full coat of feathers, the time for this varies according to the breed. Lift the lamp higher as the feathers develop and after two weeks or so turn the lamp on only at night. You'll soon see when they are too hot/cold. Huddling together means they are too cold and separate in the corners panting means they are too hot.

Hope this helps.

[Illyria54]

You can buy chick crumbs which they should have ad lib and of course fresh water available at all times, they should be under and infra red lamp until they are completely feathered and longer than that if the weather is still cold, do you have them in your house or in a barn/shed? if in the house then you can wean them off the lamp in to a warm room then when you think it is mild enough then turn the heat off. How many do you have?

[Illyria54]

You may find this useful.


http://www.plamondon.com/faq_chickcare.html