About Chicks

Time Frame

• A chick will hatch after a fertile chicken egg has been incubated by a broody hen or artificial egg incubator for 21 days. After this time, the chick will "pip," or begin breaking out of the egg. This process can take as long as several hours, or just a few minutes. Some people may wish to assist a chick to break out of its shell, but doing so is actually detrimental to a chick's health. The process of breaking out of the egg helps the chick to stretch and strengthen its muscles.
  Upon hatching, the chick will be wet. Once they are dried by the incubator heat, the chicks are removed from the incubator and moved to a brooder. Chicks won't usually eat for 24 hours because they are still attached to part of the egg yolk.
  Chicks grow rapidly. Within five weeks, the chicks will start to replace their chick down with actual feathers. Chicks reach full maturity at about four to six months of age, upon which female chickens will lay their first egg.

Types

• In general, chicks look similar to each other. All chicks measure 2 to 4 inches in height, with bantam chicks being remarkably smaller than standard-sized chicks. However, variations do exist among chicken breeds. The most common chick color is a light yellow to a light gray. The color of the chick is related to the color of the adult chicken breed. For example, Barred Plymouth Rock chickens (black feathers with white stripes) have black-and-white chicks.

Identification

• Fertile chicken eggs are sorted and cataloged upon laying. Thus, the breed of a chick is identified before the chick even hatches. However, the gender of a chick must be identified through the process of chick sexing. Sexing can be accomplished through two standard identification manners: feather sexing and vent sexing. Feather sexing works for chicks that are selectively-bred for gender identification, a process called sex-linking. Sex linked chicks look different depending on their gender. For example, Rhode Island Red chickens bred with Barred Plymouth Rock hens results in sex-linked chicks where female chicks have a white spot on their head. Vent sexing is used for non sex-linked chicks and requires a hatchery expert to manually check the vent of each chick for genitalia.

Considerations

• Raising chicks requires special equipment, food and additional time that is not demanded by adult chickens. Chicks need a brooder: an enclosed area free of cold drafts that is heated by a lamp. This simulates the warm environment created by a hen in nature. Chicks also need specialty feed that is high in protein in order for the chicks to sustain the rapid growth they experience during the first four weeks of age. Similarly, chicks also require medicine and vaccination to protect them from common avian diseases such as Marek's disease. Due to the additional requirements of raising chicks, many backyard hobbyists and farmers prefer to purchase adolescent or adult chickens. One exception are those who raise chickens for meat, and thus want to raise chicks to send the chickens to market at the earliest age possible.

Misconceptions

• Some people buy chicks to give to children as pets. This becomes a more common occurrence around holidays such as Easter. However, children are not always capable of providing the right environment for chicks. Chicks are fragile animals that require a lot of time and attention, and can die easily if not given adequate care. Parents and friends should avoid giving chicks to children unless the child is responsible and there is an adult overseeing the entire process.