CHICK TIPS
When bringing your chicks home there are a few things that are DETRIMENTAL to your chicks health. I have provided the following information for my customers as well as anyone needing assistance in caring for their new chicks. Plus a few tips and tricks for when they are older. Of course there are many other ways and methods for caring for your chickens, but this is what has worked for us.
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•Brooder - Chicks need a safe and quiet place to live for the first several weeks of life. I recommend a clear (so you can see inside of it from afar) tote/storage container with the lid cut open and chicken wire placed in the center (we use zip ties to secure the chicken wire to the lid). Other brooder ideas are fish tanks, hamster cages and small animal crates. You will want to use something that is easy to clean and that isn't heavy. There are also many professional brooder systems you can order online now.
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•Heat- All chicks require heat. Whether it be a plate heater made for chicks or a heat lamp, they need it to survive. I use both the plate heater and heat lamp as well as a heated room. I handle my chicks numerous times throughout the day but I make sure to not hold them and take them out of their heat for more than a few minutes each time. If a chick becomes too chilled they can perish and this is one of the most common reasons that new chicken keepers lose their new chicks. You want to be sure that if they get too warm they have another spot in the brooder that they can go to cool off. Here is the recommended temperature their brooders should be with each week of life.
Week 1 - 95°
Week 2 - 90°
Week 3 - 85°
Week 4 - 80°
Week 5 - 75°
Week 6 - 70°
Depending on the time of year will determine when you put them outside without a heat source. If raising chicks in the winter, I keep them in their indoor brooders until about week 10 or 12 and slowly introduce them to a small coop that is outside and has a heating plate as well as a solar light. I do this to ensure that none of them go into temperature shock and suddenly die. Some people choose to not do this, and that is totally fine as well. When it's time for them to join the rest of your chickens in the coop, it's best to add them inside the coop at night. This will reduce the chances of the other chickens noticing "the newbies" and hopefully no pecking order situations will happen.
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•Bedding - Chicks need to have some sort of layer on the bottom of their brooder so they don't slip when walking and so it's easier for you to clean. Some people use straw and pine shavings. I prefer horse bedding pellets because it breaks down as it gets soiled, helping with smell. I do not recommend newspapers because they can be slippery and cause leg and foot injuries. Depending on how many chicks you have and each brooder will determine how often you need to change out the bedding. I change my brooders out every week and when I am changing their water and feed, I use a paper towel to pick up and bag droppings. KEEP IN MIND THAT CEDAR SHAVINGS ARE TOXIC TO CHICKENS OF ALL AGES AND SHOULD NOT BE USED!
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•Feeders and Waterers - Chickens tend to be very messy. It's best to use feeders and waterers that they cannot stand in...because they poop A LOT. Parasites and coccidia can spread very quickly if chicks consume their feces. I recommend the regular chick feeders and waterers that you can find at any poultry store (or Amazon). I refill waterers and feeders twice a day for our chicks. Make sure to sanitize these when you clean their brooders (read "cleaning products" down below for more information) Bacteria can collect and cause illness and disease. Some people place their waterers on a brick or piece of wood so the chicks cannot kick the bedding in the water. Which is a good idea, just be sure that a chick cannot fall behind the brick and get stuck.
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•Feed - Chicks need to eat chick starter, which is in a crumble form. I use chick feed from a local farm in Virginia. They also require Chick Grit, which is crushed rocks and sand to help them digest their food (chickens of all ages REQUIRE grit to help aid in digestion). Once they are at the age where they can stay outside (weather permitting) I start introducing them to dried mealworms, poultry scratch and fruits and veggies. At the age of around 18 weeks, I start to give them poultry feed mixed with scratch and chick feed. After a month of this, I no longer give them chick feed. I always encourage trying to hand feed your chicks and chickens. This let's them know you have good intentions and they will be more docile. This is something you can start when they are babies.
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•Water - Be sure to change your chicks water daily (I change mine 2x a day). They WILL poop in their water and when they start taking dust baths, they will throw the bedding in their waterer. For older chickens, I add apple cider vinegar (with the mother) in the waterers once a week as well as 2 drops of oregano essential oils. The oregano essential oil has been said to combat coccidiosis, salmonella, infectious bronchitis, avian flu and E. coli, but only as a preventative, not a cure. The apple cider vinegar assists the animal to assimilate protein and assists the animal to convert food better. It lowers the pH of the digestive tract which will make the environment less welcoming to pathogens and, therefore, reduce common infections and increase resistance to disease.
•Vitamins - I always give my chicks vitamins throughout their first week of life. Hatching from an egg is a lot of work! There are several different brands to choose from in your local poultry store, but the most common is Sav-A-Chick. We use Enfamil Poly-vi-sol without Iron. It comes with a dropper, so we give 1 dropper full per container of water. When we don't have the Poly-vi-sol on hand (it's difficult to find and quite pricey) we use the Sav-A-Chick.
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•Handling - It is very hard to resist cuddling with baby chicks all day. Especially if you have children who want to hold them often. We have always practice a rule of "15 minutes out, 1 hour in". Meaning, if you take a chick out of their brooder/warmth, only keep them out for 15 minutes and then place them back for a hour. This will insure that they don't go into temperature shock. When allowing children to handle chicks, make sure they remember to thoroughly wash their hands.
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•Pasty Butt - There are several different causes of pasty butt, which is when the chicks droppings get stuck to their anal vent and block stools. Stress, being cold, no grit in their diet or overheating can all be a cause for chicks to get pasty butt. To treat pasty butt, I wash the chicks butt under running water that is lukewarm. Once the poop softens, gently wipe away with a paper towel. Be careful to not year the chicks skin/vent. Towel dry the chick and use a hair dryer on low to completely dry the chick off. If the chick keeps getting pasty butt, apply vaseline or triple antibiotic ointment to the area as a preventative. Adding probiotics to the chicks water also helps with pasty butt.
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•Blood In Stool - There is a difference in blood in chicks poop and when they shed their intestinal lining (which is completely normal and happens often). If you notice hard stool with pinkish red in it, more than likely that is the shedding of their intestinal lining. This is called cecal poo. Cecal poo is a good indication that the digestive tract is working properly. It looks alarming but is perfectly normal and is just your chick (or grown chicken) shedding intestinal lining that constantly regenerates. Blood in chickens stool usually means they have coccidiosis. Coccidiosis is treatable if caught early, which is why it's always good to examine chicks poop as well as your grown chickens poop outside. Try to identify which chick is leaving the bloody stool. Other symptoms to look for are, listlessness, no appetite, ruffled feathers, decreased growth rate and if they are older, they will likely stop laying eggs. If you are able to identify who it is, separate them from the rest of the flock and treat them for 7 days. If you are UNABLE to identify who it is, treating all of them will not do any harm, but you risk other chicks getting sick, if you didn't catch it early enough. We use 2 tbsp of Corid per container of water to treat coccidiosis. Be sure to keep the area they are living in, clean and dry. Coccidiosis is caused by a microscopic parasite called coccidia that is transmitted in the droppings from infected birds. In other words, anywhere there’s a microscopic trace of bird poo, in a waterer, a feeder, or in bedding, there's almost certainly coccidia present. One of the best ways to prevent a coccidiosis outbreak is by practicing good sanitation. Coccidia thrive in damp, warm conditions, so wet litter around the waterer is a virtual parasite paradise.
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•Medical Kit- it is always a good idea to keep several items on hand for when you have a chicken emergency. Some things like Tylan require a prescription from a vet, but it's so worth it. We always keep the following in our medical kit:
Water soluble Corid/Amprolium (antibiotic used for Coccidiosis,)
Sulfadimethoxine (antibiotic, use after Corid)
Tylan (antibiotic, unfortunately this requires prescription from a Vet, but so worth it to have on hand at all times)
Duramycin-10 (antibiotic used for respiratory symptoms)
Piperazine/Wazine a safe wormer to kill off roundworms without overloading the chicken
Fenbendazole/Safe-guard a safe general purpose wormer. Use after Wazine when a large worm quantity is suspected, or when symptoms are more specific for worms other than roundworms.
Tricide Neo marketed for fish, but can be used for bumblefoot treatment.
Hydrogen peroxide can be used for flystrike, we suggest diluting with water 1:1
Hen Healer temporarily protects and helps support healing of minor cuts, lacerations and sores. Keeps affected areas soft and creates a barrier to insects and dirt.
BluKote mild antiseptic, use gloves when spraying, it will stain anything it touches.
Vetericyn- antibacterial spray safe for almost all animals.
Non Coated Aspirin to help with pain management. Crush 4 regular strength, non coated aspirin into one gallon of water to help with pain.
Sav-A-Chick electrolytes to help treat heat stress, shock, or general illness. We use this when our chicks first hatch to give them a boost of energy. Hatching is hard and exhausting on their little bodies!
Sav-A-Chick probiotics use after probiotics or when treating for parasites.
Vet wrap
Terramycin Ophthalmic Ointment used to treat eye infections
Vet-Rx use in conjunction with treatment for respiratory illness.
Preparation H used to treat vent prolapse.
We also always keep a cleaned cage/small coop ready just in case we need to isolate any sick or injured chickens.
•Outside Time - Depending on the temperature outside, you can let your chicks run around SUPERVISED to explore where they will soon be enjoying their life. I start giving mine outdoor time at 3 weeks if it's warm outside. If you have a round baby gate you could use this to keep them all enclosed, but still do not leave them unattended! Older chickens are to not be trusted with new chicks alone. You can allow them to see each other, but it is best if you do not let them touch...unless it's a broody hen, and you are giving her new babies. But even then, don't trust the broody hen completely when giving her baby chicks without monitoring her throughout the day.
•Cleaning products - When cleaning feeders, waterers, the coop walls, chick brooders, etc. I don't use harsh chemicals. Chickens have very sensitive respiratory systems, so I try to avoid using any chemicals. I keep a spray bottle filled with water, a splash of witch hazel and the following essential oils:
cinnamon
tea tree
lavender
grapefruit
basil
lemon
peppermint
Make sure you are using pure essential oils and not "fragrance". I use this spray for practically everything (even for inside our house). You can use it to freshen up the smell of the coop or when cleaning waterers, feeders, brooders, you name it! When you feel you need something with more cleaning power, you can use a mix of water and hydrogen peroxide. This is what I use 2x a year when we empty out the coop and scrub the walls and roosts. I also use the peroxide/water mix when cleaning my incubators.
Links to some of the products mentioned:
Chick waterer - https://amzn.to/2ZBaDP2
Chick Feeder - https://amzn.to/3qKd65N
Chick grit - https://amzn.to/2NTl7a4
Medicated chick feed - https://amzn.to/2Me9Dxj