Reasons for Tossing Out Your Indoor Brooder and Start Raising Your Chicks Outdoors

It’s my first time with chicks and I felt like acclimating them to the coop sooner than later would be the right thing to do. Thank you for sharing your ideas and previous experiences.

Great article. My chicks are 7 weeks old, have been outside alongside the big chicken pen, and also inside part of coop alongside the big chickens. I moved them outside at 3 weeks, before that they were in a dog pen, a big one! Only in the box for a week. But really going to try no box, and table high pen next time. GREAT idea to raise tame birds! Thank you!!!!

So much "common" sense! Thanks for all the pics and information. Very valuable.

I've been embracing this concept since I read this! GOOD JOB!

These are great ideas, laid out well, with helpful pics too. Very good article!

I LOVE Everything about this article! Well written, packed with amazing and useful info. I’m brooding outdoors, too

I was already planning on trying this this year. You provided great photos and information to cement my plan.

Thank you.

Great article!!!

I was pleased to read this article to actually know there is a solution in integrating chicks in a existing flock. I have tried the "The no panic" method and it is basically a lifesaver. In most cases, the chicks decide to start living with the older hens by their own conscience when they are ready.
Thank you Azygous.

To me, this is hands down the best way to raise chicks so they are friendly when they mature.
Reducing stress on all the animals we choose to include in our lives is just plain good husbandry that is often overlooked. We typically make decisions about how we are going to do things that work to reduce OUR stress, not theirs. Sometimes that extra effort up front reduces all our stress.
This is such a well written, informative article that reads easily because of well thought out formatting and photos. Just wonderful!
Thank you so much!

After reading your article, I’m going to move my 4-week olds out to the pen today, with the panic room, of course. You truly taught me a lot with all of your detail & pics. Thank you very much.

I liked this article. You don't often read that someone has actually noticed that leaning over chicks and grabbing them from above frightens them leading to handling problems later on.
I liked the realization that chicks kept in little coops away from the rest of the flock integrate more slowly.
The points regarding the environment in which the chicks are expected to survive in being far removed from conditions of the brooder is also well made.

I actually read this article before and incorporated several of the ideas and they work fabulously!!
I built a brooder box with the sides covered with field fence. Field fence has larger rectangular openings, the chicks could easily go through the spaces, but adult chickens can not.
I used a heat lamp, because I could not find a heating pad that did not have an automatic shut off. The chicks thrived and had no problems integrating with the flock.
I have been brooding all of my chicks out in the coop since then. It's the next best thing to broody raised chicks!!
Your article is very well thought out and written. It makes me wonder if you were an English teacher
Thank you very much for such an informative article!

I really like the idea of raising chicks outside. This article was well thought out, explains the author’s personal experience, and includes pictures of each type of brooding environment discussed in the article.

This article gives several sound reasons to brood chicks near the flock and outdoors.

Found this very informing and makes sense! Never thought of the predator thing, but several times thought of how scary it must be to see this big person and hand swooping in to the babies. My girls are doing nicely and I always talk to them and try to always ease in to pick them up, but I like the idea of placing the brooder up higher. I also loved that garden window idea! How fun for them!

I’ve thought about going a different route with my next batch of babies and raising them in a separate area from the grownups..