Teri, April 29 2005

[Josh]

Hi,
My name is Teri, I have recently purchased some chickens and I have a couple questions for you. I have fourteen chicks at this time they range from 2 weeks to 1 month old. I have the older ones in a chicken coop we built last week and the younger ones are under a heat lamp in a small pen in our garage. We are feeding them the starter feed and I wanted to know when we should start feeding them corn or grit or what we should do at this point. Also can I get corn from a local farmer or should we purchase it from a feed store? We are also going to put up a dog pen around the chicken coop and I am wondering if we should cover the top of the pen? They will be locked up at night because we are in the country with lots of critters to get a hold of them. I guess the last thing I have to ask is when can we feed them worms? We did fertilize our yard so could the worms hurt them?
Please let me know when you can.
Thank you,
Teri

[Strongtower]

Might want to keep them on starter food till they are 8 to 10 weeks. Has medications they need.

I wouldn't feed all corn till they are older. Corn is an energy food. And also helps keep them warm in winter, but not a good balance food by itself.

Yes if possible cover the dog pen. They will try to get your chickens.

You can feed them worms anytime. They might not realize they like them at first. If fertilizer was very strong the worms would try to get away from it. So if you find any they are probably all right.

[Miss.RedneckChel]

Corn, wheat and milo are grains that put gut fat into your fowl. If you feed only these you will have fat chickens. Start feeding your biddies Boiled eggs with the shells. Just chopping them up . They will love them.
To satisfy the needs of the chicken , the feed consumed must contain the following classes of nutrients :water, proteins ,carbohydrates, fats ,minerals and vitamins. All are very important for the chicken to survive , grow and reproduce. Without water feed cannot be digested and the body cannot regulate temperature. 55% of the living weight of a chicken is water.


Proteins make up a large portion of the blood, muscles, organs, skin, tendons, bone , nail and feathers. Proteins constitute about 1/5 the weight of the living chicken and about 1/8 of the weight of the whole egg.


Protein: any of numerous naturally occurring extremely complex substances that consist of amino-acid residues joined by peptide bonds, contain the elements carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, usu. sulfur, and occas. other elements (as phosphorus or iron), and include many essential biological compounds (as enzymes, hormones, or immunoglobulins)


Carbohydrates and fats are the sources of energy. They are provided by feeding the cereal in grains {corn,wheat and milo}and fact to remember is that excessive carbohydrates are converted to fat in the chickens body.
Carbohydrates: any of various neutral compounds of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen (as sugars, starches, and celluloses) most of which are formed by green plants and which constitute a major class of animal foods..
Fats:any of numerous compounds of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen that are glycerides of fatty acids, are the chief constituents of plant and animal fat, are a major class of energy-rich food, and are soluble in organic solvents but not in water.


The functions of the mineral elements in the body are numerous, compound of mineral elements are found in all of various organs in tissues. In the absence of certain minerals, various organs are unable to perform their proper functions.


All vitamins are essential to prevent deficiency diseases with the exception of vitamin C, Which the chicken is able to manufacture in its own body. Vitamin A, D, E. and K are what is called the fat soluble vitamins, this means that these vitamins stay in the bird`s system for a long period of time and are called out when needed. The being vitamins are known as the water soluble vitamins, this and means that the system uses what it needs now and passes rest out of the system through the droppings. Thus we see that one should give the the by B more often than the fat soluble vitamins.

Now as stated above the B vitamins are different,They are not stored in the system. When a bird receives an injection of the B complex vitamins, the system takes what it needs and rest is passed out these types of vitamins must be given the more often then the fat soluble type.


I would never let my chickens eat earthworms because they can get Blackhead (Histomoniasis, Enterohepatitis).
This diease is carried by the Cecal worm and other earthworms. Birds contact the diease by eatting earthworms which contain the cecal worm eggs or by ingesting droppings from an infected bird.
If you have your birds on a good worming program you are less likey to worry about this problem.

[Strongtower]

Miss.RednecckChel,

Isn't there a difference in the "gut"worms a chicken can get and an earth worm that is a natural source of food for a chicken??

I am sorry to sound confused...(but I am : but...the chickens can get worms from eating worms??

I have never made that connection...

[Miss.RedneckChel]

Excuse me I had major surgery a few weeks ago I am still on pain medication After reading what I wrote, I have confessed myself. I should have made myself more clear, sorry about the confussion. Maybe this will clear it up. ;D

Cecal Worms
This parasite (Heterakis gallinae) is found in the Ceca of chickens, turkeys and other birds. A bird has two bags that grow off each side of the intsetine tract called Cecal the worms live near the tip of the Cecal. Eggs pass out in the droppings and usually become infective in about two weeks. The eggs are frequently taken in by earthworms so that birds may also become infested by eating these invertebrates.

If you are interested in reading about worms here is a good source. From Mississippi State.

www.msstate.edu/dept/poultry/disparas.htm

[Strongtower]

Well....you know I always just thought it was something in the dirt !!! ;D ( I mean besides worms !) DUH

I have been to that site but never looked at the worm part !!!

Will check it out !

Thanks
Helen