Our newest chickens

That's what I had read, but I'm assuming they are older Han we were told because they aren't acting like they are cold, they are moving around nicely without a problem

These chicks under discussion are around three weeks old now, if I'm understanding it correctly. The Heat Guidelines that everyone accepts as close to religious dogma are flawed, and really only meant as a starting point in a very general way.

Look at the case of baby chicks reared by a broody hen. The chicks can be living in an outdoor setting with temperatures in every range, even down to freezing. The broody hen will keep the chicks warm at around 100 degrees F, her general body temp. But most of the time, the chicks are not stuffed under her. They're running around, no matter how cold it is.

At three weeks, chicks will be spending almost no time under a broody mama hen. If the ambient temperature where the OP lives is 50 at night and 70 during the day, it's conceivable their chicks need little or no heat at this point, although, if it were me, I would provide it at night for at least another week.

The bottom line is, if the chicks are behaving in a manner that indicates they are not heat starved, then a heat source is probably not necessary. By behavior I mean chicks that are running around, active, not huddling together trying to suck up each others body heat. If, on the other hand, these chicks are smashing themselves into a tight ball at night, struggling to stay warm, then our OP is inviting disaster by not providing a heat source for them, at least at night when there's not even any sun by which to warm up.

The bottom line is behavior should dictate the amount of heat chicks need, not an arbitrary heat chart. I hope this clarifies the heat issue. If not, please ask more questions.

They are running around like they don't need anything I took this pic of them in their brooder

I've been watching them to make sure that they weren't constantly huddled around one another and the only time they do that is at night when they sleep, but all the younger chickens I have had have done that

That's good, in more ways than one. By restricting the heat, providing only what's necessary, you've managed to harden your chicks against the cold at an admirably young age. These chicks will do far better in severe cold as adults than if they had been coddled in a hot brooder for six weeks as is common practice.

I raised two groups of chicks this past year outdoors, the first being subjected to temps, from day one, in the 30s at night and not over 50 during the day. The second group was raised in summer temps, and they required very little extra heat.

Those temperature guidelines are for those folks who are new to chicks and haven't yet learned to judge the well being of their chicks by their behavior. In that respect, the guidelines are somewhat useful. But most chicks find 95 degrees F to be much too hot, generally preferring 80-85F during the first week, and that's just directly below the heat source, not the entire brooder. There are much too many heat related problems associated with brooder temps that are much too warm. It's always better to err on the side of less heat, than too much.

azygous said:

That's good, in more ways than one. By restricting the heat, providing only what's necessary, you've managed to harden your chicks against the cold at an admirably young age. These chicks will do far better in severe cold as adults than if they had been coddled in a hot brooder for six weeks as is common practice.

I raised two groups of chicks this past year outdoors, the first being subjected to temps, from day one, in the 30s at night and not over 50 during the day. The second group was raised in summer temps, and they required very little extra heat.

Those temperature guidelines are for those folks who are new to chicks and haven't yet learned to judge the well being of their chicks by their behavior. In that respect, the guidelines are somewhat useful. But most chicks find 95 degrees F to be much too hot, generally preferring 80-85F during the first week, and that's just directly below the heat source, not the entire brooder. There are much too many heat related problems associated with brooder temps that are much too warm. It's always better to err on the side of less heat, than too much.

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Thanks for all the great info!