Age of chicks

[tbracken]

Hello, how old do the chicks need to be before you can put them outside in the big cool?

 

[MorganC]

Oh man, what a big question! So many factors.
First, what are their age currently?
Second, what species are they, bantam or standard sized?
Third, what climate do you live in?
Fourth, what kind of protection do you have for them in the big wide world?

Generally speaking, putting chicks outside during the warmest part of the day starting when they are 6 weeks old is pretty safe, as long as they have a place to huddle up if they get cold and some sort of shelter away from the elements should something like bad weather happen.
Standard sized chicks you can let outside earlier than bantams; bantams I wouldn't put them outside without a heat lamp until they were at least 8-10 weeks old or fully feathered.

As always you can always let them out in a run to see how they react and always have a heat lamp for them suspended to the correct height for their age, then watch to see temperature indicators. When in doubt....leave them in.

 

[tbracken]

We are in Texas and have had the chicks for about 18 days. I think we got Black Australorp ,black sex links ,White Rocks and rhode island reds. The coop will be enclosed with cloth wire and is centered around the coop. We do have a heat lamp on them now because they are in the garage. During the day we put them in another pen for them to sun in.