We have a newly hatched chick today. What do we need to do to take care of it? Does it need food and water right away? Is there a special chick feed that we need to feed it? Should I seperate it from the rest of the chickens? Should I wait a day or two to see if any of the other eggs will hatch? (It's sooo cute)

-- Patti (trigger@mcn.net), July 15, 2000

Answers

It will not need, but can use, food and water for a couple of days. When you do feed it, you will need very fine feed. You can use chick starter or, if your chick has a hen to show it what bugs etc. are good to eat, you can put some chicken scratch (corn and wheat) in the blender until it has the texture of cornmeal. Do not feed him layer mash. The calcium is way too high, and will wreck his kidneys. If you have regular, all-purpose chicken feed, you can put some in a blender to make the pieces of a manageable size.

What the chick really needs most at this point is warmth. If you have a broody hen, put it under her at night, and she'll take good care of it most likely. Separate her and the chick from the other chickens, definitely. Usually older birds will kill a chick, and in any case, it won't have the warmth it needs. It also will be unable to get close to the food, most likely, and the food will be too big. If you don't have a broody hen, set up a brooder: a box with a light bulb low enough to make an area of the floor about 98 degrees. Put it to one side of the box so the chick has a choice of temperatures. Put the food and water at the other side of the box so the chick doesn't sleep in them. He'll sleep where it's warm.

Eggs vary in their hatching times, so whether you're incubating with a hen or an incubator, give them a day or two to make sure all that will hatch have hatched.

If you have any other questions, feel free to email me.

Laura

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), July 15, 2000.

The eggs don't all hatch the same day 'cause they weren't all laid the same day.

A wire cage for a brooder would be best for the chick(s) so they can keep their footing. Using slippery newspapers on the bottom of the cage can cause splayed legs. If something like a cardboard box is used, place layers of paper towling on the floor of the box.

Chicks have to be kept warm. Heat lamps work well and should be placed high/low enough so the chick(s) below have the right temp. 95: for the first week. Lower the temperature 5: each week. If the chook is hugging the heat, he's cold; if he's all around the brooder, he's comfortable. The lamp should be put at the opposite end of the cage than the food/water.

Chicks can live a couple of days without food while they're absorbing the yolk, but they should have water. When I have chicks shipped from the hatchery, I replace the water for 3 days with Pedialyte (or the store brand of same) to help with the stress. Chicks start on 'Chick Starter' feed. Sprinkle some on the floor of the cage at first if they don't take to the feeder. Here's a type of feeder (ignore the prices from this place!) http://larryspoultry.com/REAL%20OR%20SLIDE%20%20TRAY%20FEEDER.JPG

Chicks drown very easily, even tho it doesn't seem possible, in their waterers. Putting marbles in there the first week or two will protect the chicks. http://www.utm.edu/departments/ed/cece/idea/browat.JPEG

~Rogo rogo2020@yahoo.com

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), July 15, 2000.

Scan through "Older messages (by category)" listed below the current messages, in particular "The Hen House", and How long should a hen set on eggs? covers this fairly well.

-- Don Armstrong (darmst@yahoo.com.au), July 15, 2000.

I only have experience with ducks. They will lay for about two weeks, all three in the same nest sometimes, until one decides to claim a nest and brood. I find it amazing how almost all of the eggs layed over a period of time will still hatch out within about 18 hours of each other.

-- Ken Scharabok (scharabo@aol.com), July 15, 2000.

I just thought I'd throw in something about how eggs hatch together. As the chicks develop in the egg, they reach a point where they start peeping. The other chicks in their eggs hear that, and their bodies automatically start adjusting, usually by speeding up development. Therefore, and within reason, most or all of the eggs in a clutch hatch within a few days of each other. The chicks have an increased survival rate partly because it wouldn't do them much good to hatch in a nest that has been abandoned, and because they're safer individually in as large a group as possible. In birds that remain in the nest, such as robins, the sooner you hatch, the more food you've gotten, and therefore the bigger you are. For a baby robin who "waits" a week to hatch, there isn't much chance it can compete with the older siblings for food. If it can hatch at almost the same time as the others, it has a much better chance of surviving. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), July 15, 2000.

Thank you Gerbil, you just answered a question I had always wondered about & never knew the answer! See even in my old age I still learn ever day, thanks for being the teacher of one of the lessons I learned today! Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), July 20, 2000.

The best thing I've found for the bottom of the brooder is sand. Provides good footing, gets nice and warm, holds the heat, and they love to scratch in it. It's easy to clean/replace, and the little ones peck at it for grit until they get the hang of the larger grit.

-- Peg (NW WI) (wildwoodfarms@hushmail.com), July 20, 2000.