Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens (84 page)

By about their second week, the chicks will be ready for a bigger feeder. You’ll know it’s time to switch when chicks that climb through slots to eat get too fat to pop back out. The time to switch has passed when chicks are strong enough to overturn the feeder or they’ve grown too large to get their beaks into it easily. Whenever you change to a different feeder, leave the old one in place for a few days until you’re sure all the chicks are eating from the new one.

If the brooder is roomy enough, a hanging feeder is ideal because it holds a lot of feed, so chicks are less likely to run out during the day; it minimizes feed wastage because chicks can’t scratch in it and are less likely to bill out feed if the feeder is maintained at the proper height; and it is easy to raise on the hanger to the height of the chicks’ backs as they grow. Hanging feeders come in various sizes, from small plastic ones to large metal ones. To determine how many chicks aged 6 weeks or under may be fed from one tube
feeder, multiply the feeder’s base diameter in inches (or centimeters) by 3.14 and divide by 2 (in metric divide by 5).

Fill feeders in the morning, and let the chicks empty them before filling them again. Leaving feeders empty for long invites picking, but letting stale or dirty feed accumulate is unhealthful, so strike a happy balance. Clean and scrub feeders at least once a week.

A chick feeder that screws onto a quart (about a liter) jar has a small footprint, making it ideal where brooder space is limited.

Healthy, well-formed chicks that are housed and fed properly generally thrive. Disease is rarely a problem in newly hatched chicks unless they pick up an egg-transmitted illness during incubation, the incubator or brooder isn’t kept clean, or the chicks are otherwise exposed to a high concentration of typical poultry microbes before they have a chance to develop natural immunity through gradual exposure.

Because chicks are especially susceptible to adult illnesses such as Marek’s disease and leukosis during their first 6 to 8 weeks of life, do not brood them in unclean housing where adult birds have been raised in the past or within 300
feet (90 m) of an adult flock. When you do chores, tend to your chicks before visiting your older birds.

Stress due to chilling, overheating, dehydration, or starvation can drastically reduce the immunity of newly hatched chicks, making them susceptible to diseases they might otherwise resist. Routine activities such as vaccination or being moved also cause stress. To minimize the effects of stress, avoid exposing chicks to more than one stressor at a time. For example, avoid moving and vaccinating chicks at the same time.

Different chickhood diseases occur in different parts of the country. Your county Extension agent or state poultry specialist can tell you whether or not your chicks should be vaccinated and for which diseases.

Lots of people successfully brood chicks without losing any. People who brood large numbers of chicks expect a normal death rate of about 2.5 percent during the first 2 weeks, increasing to up to 5 percent by the seventh week. As distressing as a death may be, the occasional loss of a chick is not a cause for any panic.

A pattern of increased deaths, on the other hand, is a sure sign of disease. Other signs to watch for include listlessness, weakness, poor growth, drooping wings, decreased appetite, increased thirst, huddling near heat with heads down and eyes closed or swelling in one or both eyes, and diarrhea. The most common cause of diarrhea in chicks in coccidiosis.

A listless chick with droopy head and wings isn’t feeling well.

Coccidiosis, or cocci (coxy), is a common intestinal disease among chicks. It results from the protozoa that naturally colonize a chick’s intestines multiplying and getting out of hand, which can happen if the chick picks up protozoa too fast by eating droppings in feed, water, or litter. Litter picking occurs when feed runs out or chicks are so crowded they either get bored (because they have too little room to move around) or can’t get enough time at the feeder (because not enough feeder space has been provided for the number of chicks).

Cocci is most likely to occur in chicks 3 to 6 weeks of age, with the worst cases appearing at 4 to 5 weeks. It may be prevented by medications, including the use
of medicated starter ration, but the better option is to keep brooder litter clean and dry and to clean feeders and drinkers often. Wash waterers each time you refill them. If you find chick droppings in the water, raise the drinker by elevating it on a low platform, or switch to one more suitably designed for chicks. The best measure of all is to get chicks out of the brooder and onto clean pasture as soon as the weather permits.

When you purchase chicks from a hatchery, you will be offered the option of having them vaccinated against coccidiosis. Vaccination stimulates a natural immunity that produces lifetime protection against cocci, but you must take care to never feed medicated rations, which would neutralize the vaccine.

Chicks that have coccidiosis can’t be cured with medicated feed, and besides, sick chicks typically stop eating. This disease is serious — now is not the time to experiment with concoctions described on the Internet. Chicks with coccidiosis must be treated with an anticoccidial dissolved in their water, since they will continue to drink even after they stop eating. Treatment works quickly and effectively if started at the first signs of disease.

Coccidiosis is discussed in more detail on
page 159
.

Sticky bottoms
, also known as
pasting
, is a common condition in newly hatched chicks. Although it may be caused by disease — typically in chicks older than 1 week — it is more likely to be caused by chilling, overheating, or improper feeding. Soft droppings that stick to a chick’s vent will harden and seal the vent shut, eventually causing death.

The hardened droppings must be removed before they plug up the works. Run a little warm water over the chick’s bottom to soften the mess, then gently pick it off, taking care not to tear the chick’s tender skin. Depending on how thick the pasting is, you may have to pick off a little at a time and then apply more warm water.

When all the droppings have been cleared away, dry the chick’s bottom by gently dabbing it with a piece of paper towel, and apply a little Neosporin or Vaseline to protect the affected area and prevent more poop from sticking.

Pasting is less apt to occur if chicks are drinking well before they start eating. Another preventive measure is to combine starter with chick scratch for the first 2 or 3 days. If your farm store doesn’t carry chick scratch, run regular chicken scratch through the blender or crush uncooked oatmeal and combine it with an equal amount of cornmeal.