Hello everyone, I am new to BYC (and to raising chicks) and was hoping for some expert advice. I have two large 4x2x2 oval steel tanks (from Tractor Supply) set up and ready to go for my brooders. My first order or chicks already arrived earlier this week and the second will be arriving in a few days. However, I am worried about the size of my tanks and thinking I need to set up something larger. I will have a total of 30 chicks (14 arrived first week, 16 arriving in a few days). I'm hoping this will work for a few days, but needed advice as to how many should be set up in this type of brooder. What would be an appropriate number of chicks to remain in here, and for how long? With this number of babies, what are some good ideas for my next step-up in size? Any advice you could provide would be greatly appreciated…thanks!
I think you will be ok for two or three weeks, as your chicks get bigger you will need to expand or be prepared to clean often. You will need a top for the tanks as your chicks will start to fly around at three weeks. As my chicks grow I move them to bigger brooders until I move them to a grow out pen. I give my chicks 2-4 square feet per bird in a grow out pen I construct using OSB plywood and hardware cloth. I build it so I can take it down after I move the chicks to the coop and pen. In the coop I give them around 3-4 square feet per bird, in my run/pen I give them around 45 square feet per bird.
Wow you hit the nail on the head with the statement of Brooder size & Appropriate # of chicks that is the real question that most people miss well the next thing is the feed and water containers also so I put up to 40 in a 3 foot by 3 foot by 10" inch high brooder for the first week and cut down the number by week 2 to 20 by only having them there for the next 2 to 3 weeks before putting them out in a growing or holding area ... There is 16 chicks in this brooder at week two .... gander007
