Chicks to Chickens

The new chicks are growing so fast. These were born about April 22 (we got them from the local feed store, so I'm not sure of the exact date). That makes them about 2 weeks old now. We bought females, but the accuracy rate is about 98% which gives us a bit of a chance to get a rooster. We seem to always manage a rooster no matter what we try!

Here are the chicks at a few days old. These are Ameraucana chicks and they will lay green eggs (unless they turn out to be roosters!)

They are still on Medicated Chick feed and will be for another two weeks. At that time we will switch them to a Poultry Grower for weeks 5-12. After 12 weeks they will be on lay pellets instead of lay mash. We like the pellets because they tend to eat more and waste less. When the pellets fall on the ground, the chickens can still see them and eat them.

Here is what they look like today. You can see the fluff is almost gone and they are feathering out.

Here is a great online e-book with lots of information about raising poultry; My Pet Chicken.

The chicks we have will eventually end up in the chicken tractor 'working' the garden. They probably won't head out there until they are about 5 weeks old. Until then, they are growing in a large Rubbermaid tub in the barn.

We use old grass hay for their bedding and clean it out every day or two. With only 3 chicks, they don't make a big mess.... yet.

Here is our brood box~a large Rubbermaid tote with grass hay in the bottom and a light hanging off to the side. It is supposed to be better to have a red light instead of a regular light bulb, but we have always used a 100 watt bulb.