Brooder Box Boredom Busters

Brooder Box Boredom Busters

March 20, 2022

(Bored, sleepy chicks dozing off in the brooder!)

Living within the confinement of a brooder box, whether it be a plastic tote or cardboard box, can get boring for baby chicks. Boredom lead to bullying, pecking and all sorts of other problems. 

Help keep your brooder babies from getting bored with these easy-to-implement brooder box boredom busters!

(Try saying that three times fast!)

Rooster Bars:

As young as a few days old, your chicks will have fun hopping onto perches and practicing balancing. I use wood sticks for them when they're this small, but you can also use small branches as well.

They probably won't sleep on the them until they are much older, but the roosting bars keep them busy and active in the brooder.

Clumps Of Dirt & Grass:

Bring the outdoors inside and put some clumps of grass with the dirt attached in the brooder. The chicks love nibbling on the grass and scratching in the dirt to look for bugs and worms.

Two added benefits of this boredom buster, the dirt doubles as grit they need to help digest the grass and you're exposing them to small amounts of the pathogens and bacteria outside that they will eventually be living among. 

This helps build up their immune systems naturally.

Weeds:

Along with some clumps of grass, pick some weeds for your little ones to munch on. You can chop them into small pieces or leave them in clumps for them to nibble off short bits themselves.

Baby chicks will especially enjoy dandelion greens and chickweed.

Fresh Herbs:

Chicks will also happily munch on fresh herbs. Hang herbs like sage, parsley, basil and cilantro for them to nibble on. All the culinary herbs have such great health benefits for the chicks!

Dust Bath:

As young as a week old, chicks will start squirming around in the shavings on the floor of your brooder, trying to take dust baths. Fill a small container with loose dirt and let them practice taking dust baths.

As the chicks grow, give them progressively larger containers to bathe in. The dirt also serves as the "grit" your chicks need to digest their food, and it provides a bit of an immune system boost because you're bringing more of the outside environment inside - which is always a good thing.

Mirror:

Go ahead and laugh but before you write me off as crazy, try hanging a mirror in your brooder.

You will be amazed at just how much time a chick will spend, just standing and gazing at her reflection! A small handheld mirror works great. It doesn't have to be large.

Piles Of Stuff:

Give your chicks little piles of dirt, straw, pine needles, dried leaves - really anything they can go through looking for yummy bugs and seeds. 

It's good practice for them getting outside and foraging.  You can also sprinkle some mealworms or little seeds in as well for them to look for.

Spending Time With Them:

The more you handle and spend time with the chicks, the more apt they are to be friendly, affectionate hens.

Don't keep any one chick out of the brooder for too long, they still need to be kept under the heat for the most part, so if she starts peeping loudly, she's ready to go back. 

BUT make it a point to spend time holding each chick, talking to them, hand feeding treats, etc.

I hope you'll try these things with your spring chicks and just say NO to bored chicks! You'll be glad you did. They'll grow up happier and healthier thanks to your efforts.