Expand Brooder or Use Two?

[ajc123]

So for the past two weeks, my nine chicks have been sharing a brooder that looks like this:

Basically just a plastic bin with the lid cut out and covered in wire. As you can probably see, there's a second brooder behind it. Our original plan was to split the chicks up into the two bins and swap two each day to prevent a dangerous fight to be at the top of the pecking order. What we'd really like to do, however, is find a way to merge the two bins together to create a larger space where all the birds can come and go. Which should we do? Expand the brooder or just use two? And if we expand the brooder, what is the best means of doing so using these two plastic bins?

 

[Leah and peeps]

I would just make a bigger brooder or find a way to put two bins together, but over that i would still just make a larger one out of possibly tall cardboard and it and keep all the chicks together. Dont seperate them. I have 10 ,2 week olds and i just moved them in to a much largger brooder in the garge. Its made of a science fair backboard cut in half and it is 3fx3f. They LOVE it! They have tons more room, and also room to grow. I think it would be eassier then switching them every day as well. Ours were in a little brooder just like yours. So in my opinion i would definitly just make a bigger brooder. Good luck in whatever you choose!

 

[TcherDawn]

We expanded ours to two by using a "Sawzall" electric saw. We put them together with screws and washers and duct tape.

 

[ajc123]

Ohhh wonderful ideas-- and thanks for posting a picture, TcherDawn.

Is it possible that they can move to the coop now? While looking for answers to my first question, I read that people have moved their chicks as early as nine days. I live in Atlanta, so it gets pretty hot here-- was almost 100 degrees today. If we turn the heat lamp on every night, will it be okay?

 

[TcherDawn]

I cannot answer Southern questions. It gets into the 50s here at night, sometimes 40s, but got to 92 today. To dang hard to regulate their temperature with that kind of heat difference. They will be 4 weeks on Monday, but I have a very slow developing runty chick that needs to have the constant temps and heat lamp, so I cannot move mine yet

 

[Ms~Silkie~Girl]

I would just make it bigger, then you wouldn't have to worry about the pecking order at all, if you keep swapping them out there will prolly be a lot of fightin

 

[cheri222]

We had the same thing going on with our 4 wk olds, just too big and with all the rain this week, did not get the coop finished. We emptied out one of our rubbermaid deck boxes and took the lid off. Works great and the bottom comes out so we can just hose it out. This will work till the coop is ready. They also moved to the sun room(lots of air flow).

 

[E.G.Glayer]

Quote:
I have chicks right now hatched 7-21 in SW Ohio and they have been outside since day one. temps been in 90s during the day (heat lamp off) temps in the 70s at night (heat lamp on). So yes you can move them out they should be fine. I would recommend closing them up at night though.

 

[wsdareme]

We went the "duplex" brooder route. Similar to TcherDawn, but we designed a frame so we could use either two individual brooders (for chicks of different ages), or two with the adjacent sides cut out (more room for same-age chicks). It's in the garage right now, sitting on a standard sized card table. I'll move it to the coop eventually for permanent use out there. Here are a couple of photos:

This set up has worked amazingly well for us. It lets me keep the young chicks in a single tote so they don't wander too far away from the heat source. Then, when we need more room, we just switch to the two totes with the adjacent sides out. Great set up. Got all the supplies at Wally World.

 

[steveyou]

to ajc123 I live in southeast georgia. I purchased 10 Barred Rock in late April, 2010 and the next week I purchased 8 RIR and Buff Orphingtons. I put them outside the day I got them and never had a problem because of heat or cold. I did lose 1 BR at about 2 or 3 weeks. I don't know why it died