My baby chicks eating insects

[Kassaundra]

"Train a young chick in the way for it and even when it is old it will not depart from it" ................................................ Okay so I used a little poetic liscence, but here are a couple of videos of feeding my baby NN chicks insects I raise for them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JP0vSTtCI4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oMDBGpPvvo

 

[Carol Dee]

They really enjoyed the treat. Now to let them at the bugs in the garden.

 

[Southern Gardener]

Love it!

 

[Kassaundra]

They really enjoyed the treat. Now to let them at the bugs in the garden.

The video w/ them outside is actually a garden spot I have transformed into the nursery for a few more weeks and they patrol the whole area looking for anything that flies or crawls. They are awesome foragers so far.

 

[ducks4you]

Start 'em young. People don't realize that you have to train your chickens to eat a varied diet, or else they'll keep looking for the feed bag.

 

[Jared77]

People don't realize that you have to train your chickens to eat a varied diet, or else they'll keep looking for the feed bag.

I had no idea. Guess Ill be buying crickets & mealworms from the pet store when I get my chicks to make sure they learn.

 

[Kassaundra]

With my first batch of chicks I got as day olds we would go out in the yard (it was fall) and catch hopping bugs, and dig up grubs and worms. The hoppers we would put in the brooder w/ a pile of grass and the grubs under a pile of dirt to encourage them to hunt and chase bugs, it was the best TV ever. We brood on dirt and sand so they had grit. (We waited until they were 1 wk old). We didn't know if that was the "correct" thing to do, but it just seemed since we were basically the mama chicken we should be teaching them things the mama would.

This batch of NN we got at 5ish weeks old and they already were great foragers, they actually seem to be better foragers now then our EE's.

 

[thistlebloom]

Kassaundra, I just want to know if you knit them little mufflers to wear in the winter?

 

[Kassaundra]

Kassaundra, I just want to know if you knit them little mufflers to wear in the winter?

LOL, this is my first time w/ NN's, but I have been assured by others that have them in my area that they do well in our winters. Their bodies are little furnaces. I pick them up to transport them from the run to the coop (nursery run and nursery coop) anyway they generate a lot more heat to the touch then I remember from my fully feathered baby chicks.

 

[momofdrew]

My momma birds have their babies out rooting around for bugs on day 3 after hatching...
if they see me go into one of the gardens with a shovel they come arunning and wait for me to dig them up some grubs...