How to raise chicks

How to stimulate brooding

Provide a nesting box (e.g. a wooden crate or a sturdy cardboard box) in the coop. You best put down some straw cut short or tobacco stems. Tobacco stems have the advantage of working preventative against lice.

Put some fake eggs in the nest. Only when your hen will stay on the nest, then you can be sure that she is broody. Remove the fake eggs and place fertilised eggs in the nest. It is therefore important to collect already fertilised eggs before the brooding period begins. Store them in a dark an cool place. Please note: Do not store them in the refrigerator. The eggs carefully have to be turned two to three times a day to keep the yolk floating.

Tips during brooding

1. Nutrition
   A brooding hen will go to the feeding tray less often, but she will take in a larger portion each time.
2. Hatching eggs
   Hens brood until the chick pecks open the egg and leaves the egg. This will happen on the 21st day after the egg was laid under the chicken.
3. The "birth" of the chick
   Chicks have a special egg tooth to break the shell. When the chick hatches, it is still wet, but the down will dry quickly and a healthy looking chick will appear. It is normal that some eggs are not hatched. Those are sadly lost. The chicks can peep, walk, eat and drink from day one. Scatter some chick feed on the ground to teach the chicks to eat when they are scratching around. Also put down a shallow water tray. The mother hen will protect them from the cold and other enemies. You can house the mother and her chicks in a closed-off room, so the chicks stay calm. This way they are better protected from enemies like crows, magpies, jackdaws...

Nutrition and care for the chicks

1. Nutrition
   As of day one the chicks are able to take in a starting meal or starting crumbs (e.g. *Gold 1 Mash or *Gold 1 Crumble). After 5 weeks, the starting meal is best swapped for a growing feed (e.g. *Gold 2 Mash or Gold 2 Pellet). This ensures a balanced growth. You can give growing feed until the animal is fully grown. As of that moment, you give a laying feed (e.g. *Gold 4 Pellet), so they can start laying quicker and easier.
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2. Care
   Chicks need lots of warmth. If it is cold outside, or if they have insufficient shelter, you best provide a heat source (heat lamp, radiant tube heaters, heating plates, etc.) in the coop. The chicks will definitely love to make use of it. In contrast to the lamps, the latter devices do not emit light and they do not disorder the chicks' normal day and night rhythm.

DID YOU KNOW: Rooster or hen?

The physical differences between roosters and hens become obvious only after a few weeks. The roosters often carry their tails a little higher and are sometimes a bit bigger than hens. As from the age of 3 months the roosters will start to crow. They also grow ornamental feathers, something the hens do not have. The rooster behaviour will also be different from the hens'. The roosters will have fights to determine the pecking order.