Our new chicks (from left) Cruella, Susie and Phyllis.
There are few things as exciting for owners of backyard chickens as getting new chicks. They are just so cute and fuzzy. We picked up our little girls on Tuesday, January 29 from the breeder we bought Zsa Zsa from. This time we had some complications with our chicks. In the first few weeks we wound up losing two of the four chicks to what appeared to be cocci. Following is a bit of information about our two survivors and some lessons learned.
This is Susie (Susan B. Anthony) our blue cochin who will be large and silver.
My wife can come up with some clever names. Our Blue Cochin will grow into a very large blue/silver colored chicken. She is the largest of our chicks and is probably between 1-2 weeks old. She has a very loud chirp. She was loud enough that she woke me up overnight with her chirping. You will notice that she is feathered down her legs. This is a unique trait of the Cochin breed of chickens.
Cochins grow into large, fluffy chickens. Most of them weight 8-10lbs and look like they weigh about 20lbs with all their feathers. They are a very friendly breed and like to play mother hen, sitting on any eggs they find. The Cochin variety of bird lays approximately 3-4 eggs a week. The eggs are a creamy brown color. Cochins became world famous when a Chinese delegation gave some Cochins to Queen Victoria of England, who adored these chickens. They have been in America since around 1850 and are known to be especially friendly, although our chick is the bully of the brooding box
Our Gold Laced Polish chick – we named her Joan McHENzie since she is going to look a lot like me.
We also have a Gold Laced Polish chick. This chick will grow into a friendly, unique looking hen. She will have a fluff of feather on her head that will be gold, black and brown. Polish chicks do really well in the heat. They lay a small to medium white egg.
The two chicks we lost were a White Crested Black Polish that would have been a beautiful bird. We also lost a Silver Polish. All the chicks were inoculated against cocci but wound up getting sick and the symptoms were amazingly similar to cocci. When chicks have been inoculated against cocci they are usually fed non-medicated feed. After we lost our first two chicks I went ahead and switched to medicated feed and haven’t had a problem since. The only reason I could find for the non-medicated feed was that it was a waste of money since they had already been treated for this issue. Here are the two chicks we lost, and the names we came up with:
Our extra chick – a Silver Polish named Phyllis.
Cruella Deville, our White Crested Black Polish chicken.
We keep our chicks in the house when they are young. They hang out in the office in a breeding box that I made. They sleep for the first few days because they have been through A LOT! Chicks are shipped via express shipping to breeders and individuals in special boxes. Our breeder had at least 100 chicks in her garage. The extra travel to our house puts a bit more strain on them and they need to rest, eat and drink.
Chicks stay under a heat source that keeps the temperature in that portion of the box between 95-98 degrees. They are good about moving themselves around the box to regulate their temperature. They eat a special form of starter feed that is crumbled and easy to digest.
Getting to know the chicks.
In 1-2 weeks the chicks will start to pop out some feathers. They will begin those awkward weeks when they look like teenagers going through puberty. Frankly they are pretty ugly when they are pullets. Once they have fully feathered out and temps warm up outside, they will be introduced to the big chickens in the coop. I will let the young pullets out in the kennel portion of the coop so they are protected but not in with the big chickens. They can look at each other and get used to each other. Slowly they will be introduced to each other. We’ve never had a real problem with chickens get along since we tend to buy friendly breeds.
A lot of people ask how much chicks cost. If you already have all the gear (coop, brooding box, feeder, water, heat lamp) or can borrow it, the cost is pretty low. These unique chicks cost $18 all together. Their starter feed runs about $10. There are cleaning costs too…
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Baby Chicks Mail Order in
Brighton, Iowa
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Brighton Iowa,
including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more.
Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different
egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. Brighton
Iowa also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Brighton Iowa, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale,
turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale,
chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of
baby chicks for sale in Brighton IA.
Baby
Chicks For Sale in
Brighton, Iowa
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Brighton Iowa
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
their site and request one if you are interested.
Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Brighton Iowa * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Brighton
Iowa * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Baby Chicks As
Pets in
Brighton, Iowa
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
Brighton Iowa is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Brighton,
Iowa Baby chicks are really
adorable as well as
difficult to stand up to,
however it's ideal to prepare for their
arrival before you get them. Prepare first
by gathering not only the
proper products, but
additionally the proper
understanding to look after
them. Raising baby chicks is fairly
simple, you merely should supply them with the following: A
clean and warm
habitat Lots of food and water Focus and also
love Habitat Your environment could be a basic box, aquarium,
cat service provider, or guinea
pig cage. Line it with old towels as well as
blankets (without any loosened
strings!) to begin, and after a
couple of weeks make use of straw over newspaper.
Note: Avoid utilizing just
paper or other sandal
surfaces-- or your chicks legs could expand
misshapen. You additionally require
something to provide food and
water in, such as a chicken feeder as well as water
recipe from the feed shop, or a pickle container
cover for food and also a family
pet bird water dispenser from a family pet store. Additionally, as the chicks grow older you could introduce a perch
into the environment to obtain them
trained on setting down. Heat To
maintain your chicks heat you have to
supply them with a warmth resource.
This could be as simple as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp style lamp from an equipment store, or an infrared reptile heat
bulb additionally function extremely well (my
suggestion). Chicks need this
heat 24/7 till their downy fluff is
changed with plumes (which could use
up to 2 months). The recently
hatched out need a temperature
between 90 as well as 100 degrees,
and weekly this can
be lowered by
around 5 degrees or
so. The heat resource must be on simply one side of the cage
to enable chicks a variety of
temperature levels. The chicks are your best
thermostat- if they are hiding in the
contrary edge of your heat
light, you should
minimize the temperature. If
they are surrounding each other under the
heat (not merely cuddling),
you have to add some heat.
Housekeeping
Tidiness is crucial and also it keeps your chicks healthy and
balanced. Make certain to transform
the bedding
frequently and
always give clean
food as well as water Food as well as water.
Chicks grow really quickly
which requires plenty of clean
food as well as water. Offer
sufficient whatsoever times and examine
usually to
stop parched and
starving chicks. Chick food is different compared
to grown-up chicken food, and also it comes
in both medicated and
also non-medicated varieties. Feed chick food for the
initial two months, after that
switch over to a raiser food (~ 17 %
healthy protein) for an additional 2 months,
and then to a slightly
reduced protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have layers). Soil Some chicks want
to get a head start on taking
dirt bathrooms, while others won't take
up that activity until they are
older. If you have the space in your chick
unit, present a tray of sand or
dirt for them to shower in.
Focus as well as love There are a couple of benefits to hanging
out with your chicks. First of all, they will certainly more than likely bond with you as well as
not flee as grownups. Second, if you
examine your chicks daily as well as
view their habits, you could
capture health problem or other troubles previously. Keep an
eye out for hissing, limping, or
other undesirable
indicators. Make certain to
additionally look at
their poop, as diarrhea can lead
to matted feathers as well
as obstructed cloaca.
Last but not least, it is important to watch out for social concerns, such as the
littlest chick obtaining picked
on. Vacant nest disorder So your
chicks are currently totally feathery
and its time for them to leave the
security of your residence
as well as move outside into a cage. Check out our
part on chicken coops to find out
more
concerning coops and
correct coop environments.
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