1st timer, pic of brooder, any suggestions?

[flossyandprissy]

(two more chicks coming on Wed.)

 

[wren]

Move the food and water away from the hottest part of the brooder. Also, what's the temp in there? It's looks like you have angled the light to cover more of the brooder. Sometimes a chick will like to move a little away from the heat and other times sleep in the hottest area. If you can make small differences in temp by how you position the light they can suit themselves. You can make it too hot and kill the chicks. Same with too cold. I always give them a big area so they can be toasty warm if they want or get away from the heat almost entirely.

I can't see what the box is sitting on. If it's a concrete or tile floor the cold will seep up through the cardboard box. A table or thick carpet is good under the box.

Some people feel that newspaper is too slick for baby chicks and that it may cause spraddle legs. I will let you look into that yourself and make up your own mind!

Hope this helped!

 

[aart]

That lamp is probably way too hot for that small box.

I'd put a 60 to 100 watt incandescent bulb in there, leave the wire guard off and set the lamp right on the wire mesh on one end of the box.

Put a thermometer on the floor of the brooder under the light and see what the temp is, then put the thermometer at the other end of the brooder and see what the temp is there.

The temp should be about 90 degrees right under the light and 70-80 degrees at the cool end of the box.
Use a different wattage of incandescent light until you get the temp right...or a dimmer extension cord to adjust the heat output.

They need to be able to get away from the heat if they are too warm or they'll get sick.
Keep the food and water at the cool end of the box.

You're going to need a bigger box, or add onto that one, really soon.