Drinkers

Have a one gallon drinker for each 50 chicks. We use the small baby chick drinkers for the first few days, as we find that the large gallon drinkers are a bit deep for little chicks. If you have access to an automatic water system in your barn, these little mini drinkers run off the same line and join up to each other in a circle. They are great for the first few days, but after that the chicks tend to get the shavings into them and they get a bit messy, so we have the main drinkers in by the 3^rd day and the chicks readily start to use them.

A good ‘rule of thumb’ for the height of drinkers and feeders is to ensure that the trough area where the feed or water is should be about the height of the chick’s back. So you can see that as the bird grows the drinkers and feeders need to be lifted. Using blocks or having them on a cord that can be adjusted is fine.

       Feed

• Give your chicks a good commercial chick starter with a coccidiostat in it. A 20% starter is fine , followed by a 18% grower ration.  Be sure that all chicks have adequate feeder space so that most of the chicks can eat at the same time. 

Feed the starter feed for about 4 weeks and then go on to the grower ration. Feeding the starter ration longer than 4 weeks will accelerate the growth rate. We do not recommend that you keep the bird on the starter feed any longer than 6 weeks, and any less than 4 weeks.

The grower ration should be around 17%-18% and can be fed right through to the end. Some growers change to a finisher feed for the last two weeks this is usually about a 16% protein. It is not necessary to use a finisher ration, the bird will finish out just as well on the grower ration.

Suggested feed formulas are available , just email Barbara and she will send one out to you. We have formulations for feeding corn based feeds or wheat based feeds. We recommend that you feed ‘ad lib’ for the first week to ten days, this gives the bird a good solid start and helps build good bone structure. After 10 days we do feed ‘as required’ but we try to get the birds to empty the feeders before we refill. This helps to keep the feed fresh at all times and reduces the risk of old and mouldy feed in the bottom of the feeder.

• Keep your chicks warm. A brooder temperature of 90 to 95 degrees is recommended the first few days.A draft shield is recommended. This can be achieved by providing some kind of ‘circle ‘ of  either corrugated cardboard, or we have sometimes used bales of shavings. A little chick needs to feel secure and this circle keeps the birds enclosed in a ‘safe’ place for those first days . It  prevents the chicks getting ‘lost’ in corners and getting chilled by being away from the brooder. The circle should be big enough to provide ample room for the feeders, drinkers and the brooder and also room for the chicks to get away from the hottest part of the brooder to cool down a little.You will need to increase the size of the circle as the bird grows, and eventually can take it away completely.Try to keep corners of the room ‘rounded off’ to ensure that chicks do not huddle in the corners.After 48 hours, begin to reduce the brooder temperature by 1 degree each day down to 75 degrees by 3 weeks of age. The room temperature where the chicks are brooded should be near 80 degrees the first two weeks. If baby chicks huddle together, they are too cold. If they scatter, spread out and eat and drink, the temperature is comfortable. We use propane brooders as we find them very efficient and they usually have an automatic thermostat which switches the brooder on and off to keep at a set temperature. You can buy propane brooders from small to large.. we can give you a supplier name if you require.
• If you use a heat bulb, this will also serve as the light you need. Otherwise, limit light, after the first 4 days, to natural day length or 12 hours (whichever is longer). We tend to try and use a dimmer on our lights in the brooder room, mainly because we use a brooder room with artificial light and like to take the lights down in a stepped fashion rather than the sudden darkness. If you have a natural light brooder room, nature does this for you.
• We recommend the use of wood shavings  for bedding, keep the bedding as clean and dry as possible by removing any really wet areas and replacing with fresh shavings. Fresh clean bedding should be used often by spreading more new shavings over the old ones, provided that the area is dry. Wet bedding can be the cause of many problems in the health of the bird and keeping the bedding dry and clean should be a priority.
• Provide plenty of ventilation during the entire brooding period. Have good ventilation but avoid drafts. Keep fresh air moving and keep ammonia concentration at a minimum. We use side vents for air intake and a natural chimney  built into the roof for air to vent outside. We have a small sliding door on the chimney which allows for control of the amount of air leaving the building . We also provide for control of air intake at the side vents by making a ‘baffle’ in side that can be adjusted to be more open or less open. This way you can control the airflow in and out of the brooder room to allow for air circulation without loss of temperature. 
• Allow plenty of space for your chicks. From 1/2 square foot per bird at day old to 1 square foot per bird at 4 – 5 weeks and almost 2 sq ft per bird from 5 weeks onwards.
•  If you are pasturing your poultry, the age to turn them out onto pasture is determined by how well feathered they are. Around 4 weeks should be fine, but using your common sense if the weather is wet, cold or windy.We try to ‘harden off’ our birds by putting them outside on nice sunny days for a little while before they are turned out onto pasture for good. This requires a small outside area which can be accessed from the brooder room.

We have tried to give a short overview here of the most important points regarding rearing the chick and the growing bird. We are always here to answer any questions which you may have and encourage you to contact us via email or telephone.