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- #11
I had no idea the little guys grew so fast.
I'm in trouble, aren't I.
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I thought about doing something like that with a tote, but I don't know how to make one. I need something that's cat proof. I'm going to try and keep our two cats and future ducklings in separate rooms, but these cats are crafty little buggers. I think I'm going to try using my old chinchilla cage that has high solid walls with wire mesh openings that are too small for kitty paws to fit through, but they'll only be able to fit in that for a week or two at most. I've got two weeks before the ducklings arrive so I'm still brainstorming, lol.We start by brooding in a large storage tub. It keeps the heat in nicely, and you can put it just about anywhere. Ducks are social, and like company, so usually, the brooder ends up in the living room. The top has two large holes cut in the top to which we attached hardware cloth, and a third in the front so that the babies can see us. I made a base out of scrap wood, and screwed the tub onto it. The brooder set up and awaiting a new hatch In about a week, the ducklings will outgrow the brooder, but can tolerate a little cooler temperature, so we transfer them to a large kiddie pool. We run hardware cloth around the outside to keep them in, and give them an area with a heat lamp that they can use as needed. They will outgrow that quickly as well, and at 2 weeks we take them outside during the day to forage and get accustomed to the weather. As soon as they start to feather in, they go outside with access to a heat lamp, so they can warm up if they need it. ...They outgrow the kiddie pool really fast... Good luck with your new babies!!!
Nice setup.No problem!!
Sorry about the dust - it's been on vacation for the past few months!!
I made a wood frame for the front, and sandwiched the screen between the wood and the tub. It only really needs two pieces, but I made the frame so that it would look better. I put the duct tape around the edges so that it would look neater - it has absolutely no real function!
This is the same area from the inside - with the screen sandwiched in, there are no sharp edges exposed that might hurt the chicks
I ground down the ares where the screws were, again to make sure there were no exposed sharp edges
The finished front assembly
The top of the lid. I hold the heat lamp off of the plastic by placing the edges of the housing on boards wrapped in tinfoil. You can see the hole where I wasn't paying attention and let the heat lamp sit on the plastic for a few seconds. You can see the screws running through the top of the lid, through the wire, and into the wood.
The inside of the lid. (As you can see, one of the cats is now "helping" me take pictures..) The screws are buried into the wood, and I also ground the edges down on the inside, just to be sure.
The inside of the lid (minus the cat!)
The unit in use with 2 day old quail
...With pheasants...
...And of course, ducks!
It's really a workhorse for me, and literally cost me the price of the tote (I had scrap wood and wire hanging around already) I kept it in use from late March through September, pretty much non stop! It'll get disinfected and put back to work again in another couple of months when I start using my incubator for the season!