What to Feed Baby Chicks: A Beginner's Feeding Guide
What baby chicks should eat from day one: chick starter feed, medicated vs non-medicated, grit, water, safe treats, and when to switch to grower feed.
Feeding baby chicks is refreshingly simple once you know the basics, and getting it right gives your future flock the strong start that pays off in healthy, productive birds. The cornerstone is a complete chick starter feed, with clean water always available. Around that foundation there are a few choices to make, like medicated versus non-medicated and when to introduce grit and treats. This guide walks through everything chicks need to eat during their first crucial weeks, drawing on poultry-extension feeding guidance.
Chick Feeding Essentials
Manna Pro Medicated Chick Starter Feed, 18% Protein
$6.97 on Amazon
Complete crumble with amprolium to help young chicks resist coccidiosis.
Manna Pro Non-Medicated Chick Starter Feed
$6.98 on Amazon
Complete starter with vitamins for chicks vaccinated against coccidiosis.
Mile Four Chick Grit for Baby Chicks
$19.99 on Amazon
Finely crushed stone for chicks aged 0 to 8 weeks so they can digest treats.
Sav-A-Chick Poultry Electrolyte and Vitamin Supplement
$9.82 on Amazon
Add to water to support newly shipped or stressed chicks.
Start With Chick Starter Feed
From the day your chicks arrive, the only feed they need is a commercial chick starter. It comes as a fine crumble that tiny beaks can manage, and it is formulated as complete nutrition, meaning it contains all the protein, vitamins, and minerals chicks require to grow rapidly and stay healthy. Look for around 18 to 20 percent protein, which fuels the fast development of these early weeks. Offer it free choice, available at all times, rather than rationing meals, because chicks eat in many small bursts throughout the day.
Resist the urge to whip up homemade chick food or to share scraps from the kitchen in these early weeks. A balanced commercial starter takes the guesswork out and prevents the nutritional gaps that can stunt growth or cause leg and bone problems. It is inexpensive and worth it.
Medicated vs. Non-Medicated: Which to Choose
Chick starter comes in medicated and non-medicated versions, and the right pick depends on one main factor: whether your chicks were vaccinated for coccidiosis. Medicated feed contains a small amount of amprolium that helps chicks gradually build resistance to coccidiosis, a widespread intestinal parasite that is one of the leading killers of young chicks. For most backyard keepers raising unvaccinated chicks, medicated starter is a sensible safety net.
If your hatchery vaccinated your chicks against coccidiosis, choose non-medicated feed instead, because the amprolium can cancel out the vaccine. The two should never be combined. Non-medicated is also the right choice for keepers who simply prefer to avoid medication. Either way, clean, dry bedding remains your strongest defense against coccidiosis regardless of which feed you use.
Water Comes First
Water matters as much as feed. Chicks need clean, room-temperature water available constantly, served in a proper chick waterer that prevents drowning. When chicks first arrive, gently dip each one's beak in the water to teach it where to drink. For shipped or stressed chicks, a poultry electrolyte and vitamin supplement in the water for the first day or two can give a helpful lift. Refresh the water at least daily, since chicks foul it fast with bedding and droppings, and dirty water spreads disease.
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Grit and When You Need It
Chickens have no teeth. They swallow food whole and grind it in the gizzard using small stones, called grit, that they store there. Chicks eating only crumble starter do not need grit, because the feed breaks down on its own. But the moment you offer anything beyond starter, like greens, scratch, mealworms, or other treats, they need chick grit, a finely crushed insoluble stone sized for small birds. Offer it in a separate little dish so chicks take what they need.
Do not confuse grit with oyster shell. Oyster shell is a calcium supplement for laying hens and has no place in a chick's diet. Young birds get plenty of calcium from their starter, and excess calcium can harm their developing kidneys.
Introducing Treats Safely
Treats are fun but should wait until chicks are at least a couple of weeks old and are eating their starter well. After that, small amounts of chick-safe treats add enrichment: scrambled egg, finely chopped leafy greens, or a few mealworms are favorites. Keep treats to roughly ten percent of the total diet so they do not crowd out the balanced starter, and always have grit available whenever you feed anything other than crumble.
Steer clear of foods that can harm chicks, including high-calcium layer feed, avocado, anything moldy or spoiled, very salty or sugary foods, raw dried beans, and chocolate. When in doubt, the safest move is to keep feeding complete starter.
Moving On to Grower and Beyond
As chicks grow, their feed changes with them. Many products are sold as a combined starter-grower that carries chicks from hatch right up to laying age, which keeps things simple. If you use separate feeds, transition from starter to a grower feed, with slightly lower protein around 16 to 18 percent, somewhere around six to eight weeks. The crucial rule throughout is to keep young birds off layer feed until they approach point of lay at around 18 weeks, when their bodies finally need the extra calcium that layer feed provides. Get these first feeding stages right and you set your flock up for a long, healthy, productive life.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should baby chicks eat from day one?
Baby chicks should eat a commercial chick starter feed from the moment they arrive. It is a finely ground crumble with about 18 to 20 percent protein, formulated to be complete nutrition for fast early growth. Offer it free choice so chicks can eat whenever they want. You do not need to add anything else in the first weeks, since a quality starter contains all the protein, vitamins, and minerals chicks require.
Should I use medicated or non-medicated chick feed?
Both are valid choices. Medicated starter contains a low dose of amprolium that helps chicks build resistance to coccidiosis, a common and dangerous intestinal parasite, and it is a good safety net for most backyard keepers. Non-medicated is the choice if your chicks were vaccinated for coccidiosis at the hatchery, since the medication can interfere with that vaccine, or if you simply prefer to avoid it. Do not use both a coccidiosis vaccine and medicated feed together.
When can chicks switch from starter to grower feed?
Many feeds are sold as a combined starter-grower that chicks can eat from hatch until they begin laying. If you use separate products, chicks typically move from starter to a grower feed around six to eight weeks. Grower has slightly less protein, around 16 to 18 percent. The most important rule is to keep young birds off high-calcium layer feed until they are close to point of lay at around 18 weeks.
Do baby chicks need grit?
Chicks eating only crumble starter do not strictly need grit, since the feed dissolves easily. But as soon as you offer any treats, scratch, or foraged greens, they need chick grit, which is finely crushed insoluble stone that lets them grind food in their gizzard. Sprinkle a little chick-sized grit in a separate dish. Do not confuse grit with oyster shell, which is a calcium supplement meant only for laying hens.
Can baby chicks have treats?
Hold off on treats for the first couple of weeks so chicks fill up on balanced starter feed. After that, small amounts of chick-safe treats such as scrambled egg, chopped greens, or mealworms are fine in moderation, always with grit available. Keep treats to roughly ten percent of the diet at most. Too many treats dilute the complete nutrition chicks need for healthy, rapid growth.
How much do baby chicks eat and drink?
Chicks eat surprisingly little individually but should always have feed and water available, since they eat in many small meals throughout the day. Provide free-choice starter and clean water at all times rather than rationing. Expect feed and especially water to need frequent topping off and cleaning, because chicks scratch bedding into both and foul the water quickly with droppings.
What foods are dangerous for baby chicks?
Avoid layer feed, which has too much calcium for young birds and can harm their kidneys. Skip moldy or spoiled food, raw or dried beans, anything very salty, sugary, or greasy, and avocado, which is toxic to poultry. Citrus and chocolate are also best avoided. When in doubt, stick with complete chick starter, which removes all the guesswork during these critical early weeks.
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