25 free chick's, should we take all 25?

[JimInMichigan]

My wife was going through the free weekly paper, and the local elevator is giving away 25 chicks with the purchase of a 100# bag of Chick Starter ( $29 with tax ). She has found memories of free ranging chickens on her farm when growing up and this seemed like a great price to get her started.

For the 1st couple weeks, we are thinking of keeping them in our spare bath shower. It has a 48"x 28" floor pan. We would only need to place somthing on one side to keep them inclosed. I was thinking I could just tape up the drain. Will this house the 25 chick's for that 1st couple weeks, or should we just take a fewer amount of the free chicks?

I have a 10'x12' shed with 7' side wall's, that I am planning on converting into the coop for them ( from reading here, that should house 30 birds ). It has a concrete floor and stays dry. So with some hay/straw, they could be moved out to the coop after the 2 weeks indoors, correct? Today it is cold and rainy ( 50 F ), but I would hope within 2 weeks, the days and nights will be warmer. We've had a colder than normal season so far this year.

Forgot to add, we have 2.5 acres in a country setting. We are planning on letting the chickens free range.

Thanx for your help.
Jim

 

[socks]

just a quick reply about the two weeks and then outdoors plan (and bear in mind i am a newbie) My understanding is that for the first week the temperature should be about 90 degrees and then drop that by 5 degrees each week so you would have to make sure you can keep them warm outside...consistently so (most people use heat lamps but that might be trickier in a shed ...to keep it consistent I mean)

Anyway, soon someone who really knows will reply. Everyone is so helpful here!

 

[miss_jayne]

hi Jim! i'm in Michigan also! it was a crazy weather day here, wasn't it?

there are several things you will want to consider if 'free' is going to be 'free' in the end.

A. what sex are the birds?
B. what breed/cross?
C. what is your goal with chicken rearing?
D. where do they order the birds from?

 

[miss_jayne]

and yes, the reply above mine is also an issue. they will need to be in a brooder situation (it can be in the coop) for several weeks.

 

[vfem]

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Hi, I am just gathering that when chicks or chickens are 'given' away with anything they usually call these chicks 'straight' run. Meaning they could be male or female. In most cases of FREE they are roosters!

Just be careful... getting rid of roosters is hard enough when you have 1 or 2 you don't want.

As for your indoor question. How old are those chicks now...? I moved mine outside at 6 weeks old... any earlier then that I had a heating lamp on them. I don't do that now with the chicks I hatch myself, but that's because they stay out in the coop under mama to stay warm.

 

[bantiesrule]

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As miss_jayne states, check gender and breed. Most free chicks are leghorn cockerels.

 

[astatula]

Like they always say in Michigan, give it five minutes, the weather will change.

You will need a source of heat until they get their adult feathers, something around 4-6 weeks old. They can, and will fly very well by that age so you want to have something to contain them until they go outside for good.

Also, unless you have chicken-friendly dogs that will protect them, or you are in an area where there are NO predators, you will need to build a protected run and attach it to your shed.

You have the space, now do you have the conviction to go all the way? Start-up is the toughest time, things come up that you did not plan, like a sick chick. Do you have a hospital bed for that sick chick ready? If you have a separate hospital, do you have all of the necessary duplicate items in it to support the little sick one, water and feeder #2, another heat source for them. It's just like setting up two separate coops.

Go for it, it is a learning experience.

 

[JimInMichigan]

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[R@ndy]

I would go for it and get all of them

 

[JimInMichigan]

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