i have 6 baby chicks in a tall box with wood shavings, a small feeder and a small waterer. They have a brooder heat buld over them and seem to be doing fine. They are not going to be used as slotter. i made the choice of farming my own eggs. Any ways i was curios if there is anything vital i need to know. They are really fun to watch and my kids like them. i would be upset if anything happened to them. so i just was wondering if there are any tips on how to care for baby chickens. they are not all the same breed. all of them are different. half of them are feather footed. i live in Nevada. i have had chickens before but i have never had to raise them myself. i have a chicken coop on my property. i was wondering when i should tranfer them from the box to the cage. If you have any tips on taking care of baby chickens, i want to know them.
Thanks
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how to take care of babies chicks and tips you must know about.
Pet chickens average lifespan is about 15 years . but chicken need to be out door at least part of the day . like to scratch in dirt and take dust baths, eat tender new shoots ( remeber that some house plants can be poisonous), and lay sprawled out in the sun. unless you want more baby chickens , dont get a rooster as a companion for youre hens. some lay everyday while others only a few months of the year. Heed stroe lot cost just a few dollars for buying chickens foods needed .
raising a baby chick is fun and simple. wich meeans that they are are able to walk and eat on their own soon after hatching. tiny chicks need a heat source, a clean environment , food and water . you can invest in a chick breeder or build youre own from a larger glass aquarium or wooden oor cardboard box , a shielded – clip on lamp and some screening or towels for a cover. the box should be about 24 inches long by 18 inches wide and about 12 to 18 inches tall. this is huge enough for up to 6 small chicks. clip the light on the edge and position it so it is about 4” above the flooring. line the box with newspaper and fill with about 1 inch of wood shavings or sawdust, although paper towels work just as well and are simple to change out daily.
check the temperater under the lamp it should be quite warm on youre hand. but not hot -90 degrees F is about right . some breeders prefer use red light bulbs to minimize stress at night. the chicks will sit under the lamp to stay warm and willl wander out from under it eat and drink. use a shallow dish of water – no more than 1/2 inche deep. add small stones rocks to the water dish so the chicks cant fall in and get wet or drown.
change the water and foods at least twice a day. the chicks will peeps loudly when their cold or hungery and make contended small chirping sounds when pleased.
cup youre hand over the baby as you sit quietly , feed it with small pieces of corns , berries, live small mealworms and other treats from your hand while saying its names and within a very time small chicks will associate youre voice with food . comfort and will come to you every time you call .at least 4-5 weeks of age the babbies can go outside supervised. asnd at about 8 weeks should be ancient enough to not need the lamp anymore. at about 5 months the chickens can stay in the outside pen overnight. if you plot to have them sleep outside, start placing it in the carrier at night at around 2-3 months of age .
Keep a light on over them and they will mature quicker. Feed them mashed up boiled eggs (shell included). You can also use torn up newspaper instead of shavings (change often). Make sure to place the box away from drafts. Pretty much when they are ancient enough to jump out of the box is when they need to be place in the coop. Even then, you should place a lamp in the coop and only remove it after they are roosting away from it.
Keep them warm and out of drafts….if they are all bundled together-they are too cold.
I wouldn’t place them outside until it’s at least 65 degrees at night.
You don’t seem to be doing too terribly so far. I will but question what you are feeding them. They need chick crumbs, which can be found at your feed store. If they don’t get these for the first 6-8 weeks of life then their growth WILL be stunted and they may never lay. After chick crumbs they need grower pellets until 18 weeks ancient, and then layer pellets for the rest of their lives.
Don’t keep them on newspaper or they will get spraddle leg, a nasty deformity. Woodshavings are fine.
If they all huddle as close together as possible under the heat lamp then they are too cold; lower it. If they are spread out against the edges of the brooder then they are too hot; raise the lamp.
ok i have 5 chicks too!! i like them all and they are the best pets ever.
transfer them into the coop when they have most of their feathers.
it sounds like you are pretty much all ready for them tho. make sure to have nesting boxes in your coop so they can lay eggs.
hope this helps.
have fun with those chicks! : )