Sav a chick or sugar water

[kmitche3]

I am expecting my first order ever of day old chicks.

What are your recommendations on using either sugar water or sav a chick? Do you think one works better than the other, if so, why? How much sugar do you think I should add to a gallon of water? And last but not least, how long should I keep them drinking this kind of water?

Sorry about all the questions, this is a new learning experience for me.

 

[lroth217]

I'm no expert, but I used Quik Chik which is a lot like Sav a Chick. I had both and just chose the Quik Chik. I gave them it (followed directions) for the first week, then gave them regular water. Once a week I add the Quik Chik again just for the day. My chicks are now 4 weeks old and thriving. I have heard negative things about sugar water (along with some positive also) but I couldn't take the chance. Sav a Chick and Quik Chik have electrolytes and stuff in them that help with the shipping stress. I really do recommend these and just follow the directions and change the water daily. Also keep dumping out the water in the "bowl" part of your waterer that gets shavings or poop in it.

 

[ladyride]

I have done both mainly cause I didn't have have any sav-a-chick on hand. The sav-a-chic is better it has more electrolytes & other good stuff in it . The sugar water is ok when you are trying to get them going jumpstart so to speak , but that is only for use like the an hour or so. The sav-a-chic is better for the long run.Just follow the directions on the package .

 

[acarter26]

We used sav a chick for our chicks. This is our first year having chickens so we don't have a ton of experience but we used it from the day they hatched until they were about 4 or 5 weeks. All of our chickens are thriving now at 16 weeks!

 

[kmitche3]

Thanks so much for the help.

 

[amycpf]

With the save-a-chick, do you all think it would be ok to mix it and then store what doesn't fit in the waterer in the refrigerator until the next day. I don't want to waste, and I can mix half at a time I suppose, just thought going ahead and doing the gallon would be easier.