Help, moving chicks outside

[Samantha W]

Our coop is pretty draft free, but I live in Denver where temps this time of year can vary from hour to hour. I will not be using a heat lamp in the coop, too many scary stories for me about fires to do it, also having an extension cord snaking its way about 75-80 feet from the house is a big no-no.

So when do you think it will be safe for my chicks to go in their coop? Someone told me it is only when they have ALL their feathers, someone else told me when they have most of their feathers and the daytime temp is a consistent 78-80 degrees!

Right now my chicks are about 10 days old, so I know they'll be indoors for a while, but when do they move out and go to college? LOL

 

[JessicaThistle]

start adopting dogs, cats, kittens, hatch geese, ducks, and lots of chicks. Looking back, that's what I started doing as each of my kids headed off to college. I worry now what I may do when my 16 year old only daughter leaves in 2 years...4 boys leaving has made me a Crazy Cat Lady and a real Fowl woman...my husband better start worrying now.

Well, I'm not a cat person and we have 3 dogs, which I am kinda over. We have a guinea pig that I adore and my 8 chicks.

I'm definitely looking at what I can add to the outdoors that is low maintenance. I am already considering more chickens - maybe meat chickens, maybe a duck or two, maybe a guinea fowl or two, maybe a turkey. I'd kind of like to get a calf. I'm thinking of anyway that I can make us less reliant on a local grocery store since it closed down a few months ago. My husband says no...but we will see...hee hee.

I'm not sure if I could handle the culling and plucking of a meat bird. That one is still an emotional consideration.

 

[winteree]

Well, I'm not a cat person and we have 3 dogs, which I am kinda over. We have a guinea pig that I adore and my 8 chicks.

I'm definitely looking at what I can add to the outdoors that is low maintenance. I am already considering more chickens - maybe meat chickens, maybe a duck or two, maybe a guinea fowl or two, maybe a turkey. I'd kind of like to get a calf. I'm thinking of anyway that I can make us less reliant on a local grocery store since it closed down a few months ago. My husband says no...but we will see...hee hee.

I'm not sure if I could handle the culling and plucking of a meat bird. That one is still an emotional consideration.

yeah it's hard to go from pet to food the first chicken i culled i couldn't even eat it was just to strange every one else enjoyed through because i use to cook a whole store bought chicken once a week. they wern't the wiser until my ma asked me where i got the money to buy a chicken if i was broke from buying feed. i wish i had a camera at the time the looks on their faces where priceless

 

[winteree]

Our coop is pretty draft free, but I live in Denver where temps this time of year can vary from hour to hour. I will not be using a heat lamp in the coop, too many scary stories for me about fires to do it, also having an extension cord snaking its way about 75-80 feet from the house is a big no-no.

So when do you think it will be safe for my chicks to go in their coop? Someone told me it is only when they have ALL their feathers, someone else told me when they have most of their feathers and the daytime temp is a consistent 78-80 degrees!

Right now my chicks are about 10 days old, so I know they'll be indoors for a while, but when do they move out and go to college? LOL

my grandma was werid she would put four huge heat lamps on the porch and put all the chicks out to free range as soon as they where a few days old and they never went to far from the house until about 3 weeks of age but then again she would have about 28 brooding hens in spring so she would hatch out several hundred chicks at a time so it didn't matter if she had predators she could afford to lose a few.....dozen. But i'm going to try starting chicks out outdoors i made an outdoor brooder so we will see how that goes.

 

[Shido Burrito]

Am I a bad momma? I just moved my 5 babies into their coop tonight. They will be 7 weeks old tomorrow and it's going to get down to 43 tonight. I don't have a heat lamp in there but they have plenty of pine chips and a draft-free coop. They cried a bit but when I checked an hour later they were quiet and sleeping in a pile. Do you think they'll be ok? Man, this is going to be a sleepless night for me! I feel bad not being able to run a heat lamp out to the coop.

 

[farnorth]

They should be fine. I have 7 week old chicks sleeping on roosts in coop with no heat or momma for over a week now and have had very chilly nights. They are very healthy and doing fine..

 

[Shido Burrito]

They should be fine. I have 7 week old chicks sleeping on roosts in coop with no heat or momma for over a week now and have had very chilly nights. They are very healthy and doing fine..

Thank you! Even just a little peace of mind will help me get through this first night with them on their own out there. After tonight the lows will be in the 50s and 60s.

 

[winteree]

Am I a bad momma? I just moved my 5 babies into their coop tonight. They will be 7 weeks old tomorrow and it's going to get down to 43 tonight. I don't have a heat lamp in there but they have plenty of pine chips and a draft-free coop. They cried a bit but when I checked an hour later they were quiet and sleeping in a pile. Do you think they'll be ok? Man, this is going to be a sleepless night for me! I feel bad not being able to run a heat lamp out to the coop.

they will be fine as long as they have a heat lamp and each other (chicks are like kittens they don't mind sleeping on top of each other) my oldest chicks have been in a outside brooder since i got them a few days old at the feed store (i have had them for 10 days now) and they are all still alive and kicking not to mention making a mess



and here is the new wing of the brooder since i got 7 new chicks this weekend

 

[JessicaThistle]

Am I a bad momma? I just moved my 5 babies into their coop tonight. They will be 7 weeks old tomorrow and it's going to get down to 43 tonight. I don't have a heat lamp in there but they have plenty of pine chips and a draft-free coop. They cried a bit but when I checked an hour later they were quiet and sleeping in a pile. Do you think they'll be ok? Man, this is going to be a sleepless night for me! I feel bad not being able to run a heat lamp out to the coop.

They will be fine! I moved mine out at 5 weeks and they were never happier! They slept in a chick pile for a week or so and then they explored the roosts. Don't feel bad. These are not human babies. They are chickens! The need to become chickens!

I didn't sleep well and insisted on going and peeking at them in the middle of the night. What I found was that they were completely fine and didn't need me. I'm sure you will have the same result!

 

[Shido Burrito]

They will be fine!  I moved mine out at 5 weeks and they were never happier!  They slept in a chick pile for a week or so and then they explored the roosts.  Don't feel bad.  These are not human babies.  They are chickens!  The need to become chickens!  

I didn't sleep well and insisted on going and peeking at them in the middle of the night.  What I found was that they were completely fine and didn't need me.  I'm sure you will have the same result!

And you were completely right Jessica! I went out at 6 this morning and opened up the coop door and they all tumbled out, excited for another day outside!

So if anyone else is worried, my 7 week old chickens did fine in 43° weather without a heat lamp.