baby chicks!!!

Started by the bee boy, January 26, 2010, 10:05:00 AM

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the bee boy

hey all! i finaly found where i can buy baby chicks in my area! theres this place called farmer dave's farm market.they'll be selling weaned baby pigmy goats, baby bunnies and... BABY CHICKS! they are $3.00 each, and i am going to buy three: 1 female buff orpington, 1 female silkie, and 1 female barred plymoth rock.our local feed store is'nt going to sell chicks but they sell all the supplies. i am going to buy a red heat lamp, a feeder and a waterer, chick starter, grit, dink mix ,and some pine shavings or staw.what do you think? could some of you post some pics of your coops here so i can get some insparation? thanks!
clayton moore
(and i am going to build them a little practice roost. they are going to stay in a cardbord box but when they get a little bigger(3 weeks mabye) i will ask one of our neihbors if they have a kiddie pool and i will keep them in that until they go to the coop.also, is feurary a good time to get chicks?)
i'm SO  exited!!! :yippiechick:
"when life gives you lemons, squirt them in your enemy's eyes!"

the bee boy

could sombody PLEASE reply?
"when life gives you lemons, squirt them in your enemy's eyes!"

wd

Pictures? sorry don't have any here. A coop? doesn't take much to house them at all. Maybe someone will post some pics.

Ive used both pine shavings and straw. As green as you can get it alfalfa has worked well for me. I prefer chopped straw over shavings because they can eat the wood plus it tends to get soaked with water which can create problems if you don't stay on top of it. anything wet should be removed asap and replaced with dry.

Water soluble vitamins is something I always use. If I may, be sure your chick starter is for chickens and not game birds, there's a difference in protein levels, chickens don't need as much. If feed crumble is to big for them to eat, I've used a blender to chop it up a bit until they can eat it on there own straight out of a bag.

As far as I'm concerned, One can raise chicks any time of the year.


Portia

I have some pictures up on photobucket of our coop build.  I can PM or email the link to you if you'd like.
d

lakeman

I am my own biggest critic!

Hillbillenigma

Do as much reading as you can before going to pick them up. 

To start out Chicks I put them on newspaper (not slick Ad paper but B&W paper) for a few days until they are sure of what their feed is.  Change the paper daily.  Make sure they can get away from the Heat (this is as important as being able to get close enough to the Heat).   

Picking them up a couple of times daily and letting them walk on your legs and then gently releasing them back into their area will help them get used to your presence.

Predators - your House Cat, the dog, anything that can harm them will be your biggest concern!   Can't stress enough the importance of safety. 

Again, keep reading!

Buff Orps were always my favorite.

Good Luck.
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. The Marines don't have that problem."
~ Ronald Reagan 1985