New Chick Spring Chick Days Instructions

New Chick Spring Chick Days

Care Instructions

ATTENTION : IMPORTANT SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS

Live poultry (chicks, chickens, ducklings, ducks, geese, guinea fowl and turkeys) can spread Salmonella germs even if they look healthy and clean. When spread to people, these germs can lead to an illness that can be mild, or severe and life-threatening for certain people. Here are a few simple tips to help you protect yourself and your family:

• Always wash your hands with soap and water right after touching backyard poultry, their eggs, or anything in the area where they live and roam.
• Children younger than 5 years, adults older than 65 years, and people with weakened immune systems shouldn’t handle or touch chicks, ducklings, or other poultry. They are more likely to get sick from germs like Salmonella.
• Don’t snuggle or kiss poultry because germs could get into your mouth and make you sick.
• Don’t let live poultry into any human living areas, especially in bathrooms and areas where drink or food are prepared, served, or stored.

For more tips and safe handling information, visit https://www.cdc.gov/backyardpoultry or call 1-800-CDC-INFO.

Delivery & Pick-up
Keep the chicks in the box and place on the fl oor so they won’t slide if the vehicle comes to a sudden stop. If it is cold outside, keep the heater going inside the vehicle. If it is hot outside, do not leave chicks in a closed car. Chicks & Hatching Eggs are available for online purchase. Orders will ship Mon-Wed of each week. Eggs ship via USPS to your local Post Office for pick-up. You will receive a call at the phone number you provide when placing your order. They must be picked up within 24 hours.

Once at Home
Set up a brooding area in a garage or other protected outdoor space. When raising chicks or ducklings, use a sound structure with walls at least 18 inches high and place the box in a safe area away from drafts and household pets. Use a screen to cover the structure. For larger numbers, a metal stock tank can be used in an enclosed, draft-free outbuilding. Do not use a cardboard box or plastic bin as a brooder area. The brooder lamp can melt the plastic, fall into the pine shavings or start the carboard box on fi re. Chicks need one-half square foot of space per bird for the fi rst two weeks. They grow fast, so you will need to expand the area as they grow. After two weeks, increase to one square foot per bird.

Bedding
Provide bedding to catch and absorb chick droppings and change daily. This also prevents the surface from being too slippery for the chicks. Without proper footing, their legs will not develop correctly, making them spraddle- legged. You’ll want to have 2-3 inches of litter, typically pine shavings. If your brooding box has a plastic or metal fl oor, you may want to put down paper towels first to give the chicks better traction. After a few days, you can slowly change out the non-slip surface with bedding such as chopped straw, shredded newspaper, or shredded cardboard. Always make sure it is kept dry to deter mold. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water immediately after changing the bedding or anything in their area.

Keeping Them Warm
Chicks need to be kept in a warm place until they are fully feathered. The temperature at the bottom of the brooding area should be 95 degrees F to start and reduced at least fi ve degrees each week until chicks are a month old. Use a brooder lamp clipped over one side of the brooding area so the chicks can choose whether to be under the light/heat or not. Paying attention to the chicks’ behavior is important in understanding if they are hot or cold in the enclosure. If chicks are crowded together directly under the heat source, then they are cold. If they are around the edges of the brooding area, then they are too hot. Adjust the height of the lamp accordingly and give them enough room to move in and out of the light to regulate their body temperatures. To prevent fi res, be sure that the heat lamp is secure and not near any materials that may catch fi re. As a reminder, poultry should not be kept in human living areas, bathrooms, or places where food is prepared/stored, such as kitchens or outdoor patios.

Food & Water
Set out water and chick starter feed in separate containers. Keep both food and water clean and free of droppings. The typical one gallon chick fountain should be adequate for up to 50 chicks, the typical 10 lb. chick feeder can feed up to 25 chicks. If chicks are not drinking, dip their beaks in the water to get them started. A chick fountain is by far the best way to give chicks water. Saucers or other makeshift containers spill easily, making the brooder area wet and unsanitary. Never let the chicks go without water. For feed, start chicks on a 18-20% protein (24% protein for broilers) starter ration. At 8-10 weeks old, switch chicks to 18-19% chick grower.

Odds & Ends
As chicks mature, they will begin wanting to roost when they are resting. Provide roosting opportunities a few inches off the ground, such as a secured stick or rock that can hold the weight of the birds, to keep them from roosting on the waterer or feeder. As the chicks start to feather, on warm days put them in a wire pen outside for short periods of time in a draft-free area. Keep an eye on them and provide a tray of sand so they can dust bath. As you work with the chicks, remember that slow movements are less apt to frighten them.

For more information TractorSupply.com/ChickDays

HEALTHY FAMILIES AND FLOCKS

Live poultry, such as chickens, ducks, geese, and turkeys, often carry harmful germs such as Salmonella. While it usually doesn’t make the birds sick, Salmonella can cause serious illness when it is passed to people.

HANDWASHING PROTECTS YOU FROM GERMS

• Always wash your hands with soap and water right after touching live poultry or anything in the area where they live and roam.
• Adults should supervise handwashing for young children.
• Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not readily available.

HANDLE BIRDS SAFELY

• Children younger than 5 years, adults older than 65 years, and people with weakened immune systems should not handle or touch chicks, ducklings, or other live poultry.
• Do not bring chicks, ducklings and other live poultry to schools, childcare centers, or nursing homes.
• • Do not snuggle or kiss the birds, touch your mouth, or eat or drink around live poultry.

SAFELY CLEAN COOPS

• Clean any equipment used to care for live poultry outside, such as cages or feed or water containers.
• Set aside a pair of shoes to wear while taking care of poultry and keep those shoes outside of the house.

POULTRY BELONG OUTSIDE

• Do not let live poultry inside the house, especially in kitchens.
• Do not let live poultry in areas where food or drink is prepared, served, or stored.

Have a Backyard Flock? Don’t Wing it.
Visit www.cdc.gov/backyardpoultry for more information

References

• Chick Days: Live Chicks & Poultry for Sale Near You | Tractor Supply Co.

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