I dont even like posting this, as I am ashamed. I am posting this for one reason only, to prevent someone else from doing the same stupid thing I did.
Three days ago, I tranfered a bunch of 8 week old chicks into a section of the big coop. There were two adults in this pen, but neither was bothering the chicks. The first two nights, I locked them in at night. Today, I worked 5pm to 1am. It rained this afternoon, and I checked on them as soon as the rain started, and all of the them had gone back into the coop out of the rain. They were having so much fun outside, I didnt want to lock them in, and since I knew they knew to go in out of the rain, I left them out in the fenced in run like I do all my other chickens. I went to work.
A bad storm blew in tonight. Driving home, I worried about the babies and if they had gone in, but I was sure they had. As soon as I got home, I checked on them, and every last one of them had stayed out. Here are the brutal statistics...
Dead on Arrival: 5
Near-Dead: 8
Very Critical: 6
Critical: 6
Should make it: 6
They are now all locked inside, under a heat lamp, but I fear it is too late for many of them. I feel so horrible, and sick inside, knowing this was all my fault, and so totally preventable.
So please, keep those chickens locked in the coops at night until they are grown. If you're not going to be home, lock them in anyways. Learn from my catastrophic mistake.
Three days ago, I tranfered a bunch of 8 week old chicks into a section of the big coop. There were two adults in this pen, but neither was bothering the chicks. The first two nights, I locked them in at night. Today, I worked 5pm to 1am. It rained this afternoon, and I checked on them as soon as the rain started, and all of the them had gone back into the coop out of the rain. They were having so much fun outside, I didnt want to lock them in, and since I knew they knew to go in out of the rain, I left them out in the fenced in run like I do all my other chickens. I went to work.
A bad storm blew in tonight. Driving home, I worried about the babies and if they had gone in, but I was sure they had. As soon as I got home, I checked on them, and every last one of them had stayed out. Here are the brutal statistics...
Dead on Arrival: 5
Near-Dead: 8
Very Critical: 6
Critical: 6
Should make it: 6
They are now all locked inside, under a heat lamp, but I fear it is too late for many of them. I feel so horrible, and sick inside, knowing this was all my fault, and so totally preventable.
So please, keep those chickens locked in the coops at night until they are grown. If you're not going to be home, lock them in anyways. Learn from my catastrophic mistake.
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