The three bucklings are doing very well after having the trauma of disbudding...to be honest I think I was more traumatized than they were, but I wanted to get up close experience. At any rate, they are 16 days old and not even nibbling grain. They nibble at grass and at hay, but seem confused by the grain. The last kids I had munched on grain starting at ten days. What do you think, will they just start when they are ready, or do I need to show them that it's edible? How do I show them it's edible?

-- Doreen (animalwaitress@yahoo.com), June 05, 2001

Answers

I've noticed the kids raised on their moms will start nibbling much sooner than the bottle babies, as they learn from their moms. I think if you keep putting out just a little when you feed the others, they will eventually nibble at it, when they get hungry.

-- mary, in colorado (marylgarcia@aol.com), June 05, 2001.

We don't even have grain in the pen at that age! I do put some out at about 4 weeks, I sit there and run my fingers through it, they come and see what I am doing, and are nibbling at it soon. By 8 weeks they are really eating, by 12 weeks, at the usual weaning age here, they are consuming a pound a day each. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), June 06, 2001.

Okay...four weeks! I guess I will be saving on feeding the grain to the fire ants and chickens by not putting any out for them. All the stuff I have read says to give them a little to try, not to really eat, when they are about a week old. Hmm. Thanks! At least now I don't need to worry that they might be retarded!

-- Doreen (bisquit@here.com), June 07, 2001.