LuckyChickenLover- Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 My two and a half week old chooks are in the habit of having a dustbath in the chick crumbs that I give them. They kick out most of the food before they get a chance to eat it, which means that I am wasting a lot of food and sometimes the chooks get hungry before I realise that the bowl needs refilling. I put the food in a small ceramic bowl, which the chooks can climb into. I did think about buying a chicken feeder like this , so that they couldn't climb in the food, but it wouldn't fit in the brooder box, and I thought that by the time I moved the chicks into a bigger box, my eglu would have arrived so I could use the grub and glugs. Should I give the chooks a seperate dust bath to bathe in? They have wood shavings which they like to dig in but I wasn't sure if I should give them sand or something. Thanks ~Lucky Chicken Lover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falkor Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 depending how many chicks you have I would think one of these would be suitable the feeder in the pic you posted looks a little big for chicks TBH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 You need something with a grid to stop them flicking food out These are good but can come apart http://www.flytesofancy.co.uk/chickenhouses/Eton_Plastic_Feeders.html or this green one http://www.flytesofancy.co.uk/chickenhouses/Jam_Jar_Chick_Feeder_1kg.html or these (I use these) http://www.flytesofancy.co.uk/chickenhouses/Economy_Chick_Feeder_troughs.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted April 13, 2010 Author Share Posted April 13, 2010 Thanks, but I don't think any of those will fit in the brooder box .I only have two chooks so I didn't think I needed a particularly big brooder so I just used an old unused hamster vivaruim thing. Would it work if I put a small piece of chicken wire over the bowl somehow? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 the troughs are only 30cm long, if they wont fit in the brooder maybe a review of the size of brooder is in order? chicks need space to get away from the heat. for up to half a dozen chicks the minimum brooder size I would use is 40 x 30 for up to 3 days old, 80 x 50 up to 2 weeks and 100 x 60 up to 6 weeks then a 4 x 3 pen till completely ready to go outside You can put chicken wire over the bowl yes, make sure its all tucked in and keep the dish topped up or they will rub their faces on the wire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted April 13, 2010 Author Share Posted April 13, 2010 The brooder is 50cm by 20cm and there are two two-week-old chicks in there. We're going to move them into something bigger in the near future though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raina Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 As i type this one of my chicks is in its food dish having a dust bath lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 Those feeders may look big but they are diddy honest! the round ones are probably 4 inches across and the trough is about 30 x 5cm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyChickenLover- Posted April 13, 2010 Author Share Posted April 13, 2010 Okay I'll get one as soon as I can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
