Moving Chicks To The Coop

Hi folks,
My girls will be 7 weeks old on Monday and it's time to transfer them to the coop. I live in the Northeast. It's due to be in the 50's (sometimes 60) this week with nighttime temps in the mid to upper 30's. I plan of running a heater during the nights. I'm confident they will be fine during the day. They've been on a porch that that maintains about 65 day and night. Since they are fully feathered they should be fine in the coop at night, correct? I imagine the heater will keep it around 50.
Looking to hear some of your experiences.
Thanks!

They're completely feathered and no longer require ANY heat. With the mild temps you're describing, it shouldn't be a rough transition. Just put them out.

Your chicks will easily become cold hardened if you allow it. Don't heat the coop.

Yep, agree agree! Don't heat the coop. They look great, and don't need it. Sometimes it's not the chickens who need the heat, it's us....we think they'll just keel over and die if they are exposed to temps lower than 70. Nope, not happening. They are perfectly outfitted.

My first were 5.5 weeks old and not as feathered as yours when I evicted them. That was on April 1, 2014....gee, today is their "Independence Day" huh? It got down to 20 that first night. I had a heat lamp out there but every time I jumped out of bed and ran out to check on them they weren't anywhere near it. They were snuggled down in a ball by the pop door. Same thing the second night. The third morning I pulled the lamp - if they weren't going to use it anyway I wasn't wasting the electricity and risking the fire. That night it snowed. And our last snowfall was on June 6th. Now I totally skip all that and brood them out in a wire pen in the run from the start, and they do fantastic!! Totally off all heat source (I use a heating pad) and fully integrated with the flock by 4 weeks old.

Hope you don't mind if I piggy back on your post but I had the exact same question. We've had our chicks 4 1/2 weeks and they were about a week old when we got them so they should be approx 5 1/2 weeks now. They aren't full feathered yet but they're getting close. I think they might be getting too big for their brooder though...its 4 x 2 x 3 and there are 9 of them and they seem to fight more and more because of the close quarters. I was thinking I could move them to the coop (12 x 12 x 10) in a week and putting the heat lamp in a corner just in case the temp drops way down (we're in NE, it still gets below freezing on occasion in April). Any reason not to do this?

Eggstravert said:

Hope you don't mind if I piggy back on your post but I had the exact same question. We've had our chicks 4 1/2 weeks and they were about a week old when we got them so they should be approx 5 1/2 weeks now. They aren't full feathered yet but they're getting close. I think they might be getting too big for their brooder though...its 4 x 2 x 3 and there are 9 of them and they seem to fight more and more because of the close quarters. I was thinking I could move them to the coop (12 x 12 x 10) in a week and putting the heat lamp in a corner just in case the temp drops way down (we're in NE, it still gets below freezing on occasion in April). Any reason not to do this?

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No heat lamp needed at their current age. If you're concerned about them being cold, you can give them a huddle box. Simply a cardboard box large enough for them to all be in without crowding (think cozy) and be able to stand up. Put some bedding into it and put them in the coop with it. My chicks in central Maine do well without any heat source at 4 - 5 weeks old. They are brooded outside starting in the first week.

lazy gardener said:

No heat lamp needed at their current age. If you're concerned about them being cold, you can give them a huddle box. Simply a cardboard box large enough for them to all be in without crowding (think cozy) and be able to stand up. Put some bedding into it and put them in the coop with it. My chicks in central Maine do well without any heat source at 4 - 5 weeks old. They are brooded outside starting in the first week.

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As do mine in Northwestern Wyoming, not far from Yellowstone Park. Mine are totally off heat by 4 weeks old, and our springtime temps can easily drop into the teens and twenties. BUT since yours are raised inside and (I'm assuming) under a heat lamp you might want to start shutting that light off so they can acclimate to both the chillier temps and natural day/night cycles.

I kicked mine out a week ago at three weeks. No heat, temps down to 40º.
Today I turned them loose with the big birds. They appear to be getting along fine.

BBQJOE said:

I kicked mine out a week ago at three weeks. No heat, temps down to 40º.
Today I turned them loose with the big birds. They appear to be getting along fine.

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And Joe probably also told them to go get a job and pay rent. Amirite, Joe?