Chickens, ducks, turkey, and most other forms of poultry are precocial birds — they can begin to eat bird seed the moment they emerge from their eggs, which helps them gain valuable weight quickly and be and be grown in large numbers. Squab, however, are altricial birds, born immobile and helpless. In the beginning, squab must rely on both their parents to feed them directly with “crop milk” by gurgling up their food.