Am I being mean?

[LindaN]

I have three the same age. While I did put mine outside all day Monday and Tuesday, it's only in the high 50s/low 60s here in Chicago today, so they have been kept indoors. I'll put them out again in a few days when it warms up. But I will not leave them outside at night as long as the temps are below 70 at night since they are not yet feathered in.

Moving 19 chicks in and out of the house every night and day is probably too much work, though. I second the reommendation to put a lamp on them at night until they get a bit older and more feathered. Better safe than sorry!

 

[Chick1043]

I think three weeks is too young to put outside..I would give them a heat source!

 

[cassidy22]

They are 3 weeks, so they can't fly much, but can you provide them with perches? That will keep their feet up off any cold ground, and should help them stay warmer. It might be fine for now, but you need to be ready for a cold snap and have the heat lamps available. You need to make sure that heat lamps will be safe, not touching anything that can catch fire, and that the chickens can't knock it over onto anything that might catch fire. You also need to make sure that the heat lamp doens't put out TOO much heat, because that will send them scrambling away, and they can just as easy suffocate by piling up to avoid the heat.

 

[HappyPlace]

Really, I wasn't trying to start an argument. I really want to do what is best for my chicks. I worried about a heat lamp because I can't run it all winter (or all day, for that matter), and it seemed even worse to let them get used to a heat source and then suddenly take it away when it really did get cold out.

I have been watching my chicks faithfully, going out numerous times a day to check on them and several times after dark just to make sure that they are still doing well. They do have branches in their pen that they have been using, and I even put a branch in the area of pen that they use to hide from the dog. Other than play, I put them there so that they could get off the ground (which is quite wet in the morning). I don't want anyone to think that I don't care about my chicks or that I am trying to do the easiest thing for me. This is not an easy decision for me because I really don't want to hurt their chances either way.

I just went out to check on them and they are starting to huddle like they do when they are cold (first time today) and I probably will set up the heat lamp. I don't want them to get used to it, but I can't have them shivering, either.

Truly, thank you - everyone - for your input.

 

[CluckCluck18]

I have 6 new ones in a brooder in the garage where it's in the 90's during the day but goes down to75 or so at night......I didn't give a heat source at night and I think it contributed to them pasting up and I lost 2. Not to mention having them pile on top of one another. I don't think you are mean, but keep in mind that in nature they would have their mama keeping them warm at night. You might want to reconsider

 

[dianaross77]

If they are 3 weeks old right now then in another month they should be fine to go without heat. That will still allow them enough time to acclimate to the cold before winter. You could try a ceramic heat emitter. My concern about using a heat lamp in the coop wouldn't be spoiling them, it would be starting a fire. The ceramic heat emitters are more expensive but a whole lot safer.

 

[HappyPlace]

Ok, it's been two nights since I last posted about this and I have to say... I had a lot of doubt about putting a heat source in the coop for my chicks and so I ended up not giving them one. Something was just telling me not to and whether it was the best thing or not, it seems to be okay. My chicks got through the last two nights fine, though a little chilly in the morning after they were running around in the frosty grass. I checked on them quite a bit both nights until I went to bed myself at 11:00pm and I did not see any piling up, only cuddling (I could even do an actual head count every time). Too help them, I blocked the entrance closest to them to keep out wind (the other entrance was still open) and remake their "nest" every day after they have left the coop.

Again, it may not be best, but it seems to be working to not have a heat lamp in the coop. Thank you, everyone, again, for the advice. I may regret not taking it, but I hope not...

 

[Fierlin1182]

I'm a bit late to join the party, but...

My chicks went outside at less than three weeks. They were absolutely fine, and it was early spring, so not that warm yet either. As long as they're not showing any obvious signs of being cold, you'd be surprised at how much heat the little tykes can generate by fluffing up together!

 

[Judy]

Last spring I brooded 6 chicks in the coop with a heat lamp after the mother kicked them out. Like you, I made a fluffy nest for them to cuddle in. Nights were 50-60 but my coop is very airish, for this climate, so unless they were in their nest they would feel any breeze. At 3 weeks, they moved for the night to a corner of their wire sided pen, as far from the heat lamp as they could get, cuddled but not piled, in a relatively non-drafty spot, so I turned the heat off entirely. It could not have been very warm under the heat lamp as it was hung rather high. Like you, I would rather have them on the cool than the warm side; I think they're healthier. I feel if they're not piling, they're fine.

 

[HappyPlace]

I'm glad I'm not the only one doing this with my chicks.

I still worry a little, but I really think I'm doing the best thing for my chicks. They are feathering out pretty quick now and seem to be the picture of health so far. I know it helps them to be a little cool at night (though, really, when I check on them after they cuddle in, you wouldn't know it) because during the day, they are running around and exploring. I know that if they had a heat lamp at night (even if it was just a 40 watt bulb), these 60 degree days wouldn't seem so balmy to them. I've even caught them sunbathing despite the chilly/windy days lately.

I really am glad that I trusted my instincts on this and I hope that things continue as they have for my little chicks. Even my family is impressed with how well they are doing.