Baby Basics - Raising Poultry - page 79

You can use straw for litter , but keep in mind that it often carries the eggs of the
protozoan that causes coccidiosis, a disease you want your chicks to avoid at this age,
before their bodies can better cope. I prefer to use straw once the chicks reach 12 weeks
old and have passed that early teenage stage of high susceptibility. Refer to page 79 for
an overview of coccidiosis.
Never use fine sawdust-like material.
Water
Birds in these larger facilities are ready for larger waterers; the now bigger birds tip
over the small waterers suitable for birds less than a month old. Still, it's best to use the
type of waterer that allows only a small space for drinking. You don't want to put in tub
waterers or anything of that nature because the birds tend to wade in the water, walk in
the litter, and make a mess.
Freedom for Six-Week-Old Birds?
When young fowl are four to six weeks old, you have to decide if you're going to turn
them out into a pen or let them run around your yard. Ask yourself if you have the time
to be as attentive as needed to watch for predators if the fowl run loose in the yard out-
side the confines of a protective pen. If you view your young poultry as if they were
young children you will make the proper decisions.
A chicken tractor (see page 36 , Housing and Supplies) will protect the growing birds
from predators and is a fabulous choice for this point in their lives. Most of the chicks
are ready to get out and start exploring the world and the chicken tractor allows them
plenty of room to move about while also providing appropriate protection for their age.
If you have decided simply to turn them out on your property, and you have a large
area, some chicks will get lost. Something may spook them and they'll go wandering in-
to the tall weeds, much as a small child might stray off. You'll then spend most of your
late afternoons and evenings looking for and chasing after peeping chicks spread far and
wide. The first few times you turn them out, do it late in the afternoon and for just a
short period so that they don't venture far. As daylight fades, chickens naturally look for
a place to roost or bed down for the night and this works in your favor. Gradually in-
crease the amount of time for roaming over a period of days until they eventually come
to know where they live and how to get back home. I usually start out about 6 p.m. and
work backward about a half hour every few days.