Baby Chicks Follow Mom Chicken In Food Searching Party

Raising chicks is fun, educational and is one of the most rewarding things you will do!

Chicks are cute and endearing, but they do have some special needs and we hope to guide you through the process of raising a baby chick to a hen.

Once your chicks arrive place the container inside the brooder if you can, you don’t want them escaping! Take them out one by one, dip their beaks into the water and then the food and place them under the heater. This is an important step. You have oriented them to food and water – they will remember that and now be able to feed and water at will. Even if they don’t all remember, at least a couple will and the rest will follow suit.

Now, as much as you would like to play and hold them, let them rest up, it has been a long day for them!

Check them periodically to see how they are doing. An easy way to tell if the temperature is just right in the brooder is to watch the chicks.

If you are using the heat plate it should barely touch their backs when they are underneath it, their own warmth and the radiant heat from the plate will keep them plenty warm and cozy.

Once they have settled in, you can start to handle them. A little and often works well for me. A good way to start is to put some crumbles in the palm of your hand and rest your hand on the floor of the brooder.

At first they will be hesitant, but their curiosity will get the better of them and they will soon be running all over your hand.

They are very quick, so if you pick them up be careful they don’t surprise you and jump/fall from your hand. Try to ensure a soft landing on bedding, straw or such.

With this in mind, you will need to keep their house as clean as possible. It doesn’t have to be pristine; in fact a small amount of poop exposure is actually beneficial. However the bedding will need to be freshened up a couple of times a day as wet, poopy bedding is paradise for some nasty bugs. Water and food should be changed as frequently as needed but at least twice a day.

A thorough house-keeping should be done as needed, but if you are diligent on ‘poop patrol’ it should be weekly.

Something called brooder pneumonia can be caused by damp, moldy condition of the bedding, there is no cure and severely affected chicks can die – keep it clean and dry.

Remember everyone does it a bit differently; this is a guide, not a mandate! The only non-negotiable is keeping the brooder clean.