brooder

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mrchickflick

mrchickflick

In the Brooder
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Apr 20, 2017
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I have just received my chicks, 14 in all, they seem good, and i do have a coop and run in place, it is warming up in Arkansas, but nights are still chilly, 50 degrees, around night time...atm i have my chicks in a card board box, i am in need of pine shavings, i believe wife is bringing some home tonight..what will work other then pine shavings? Do I need to put the heat lamp on them, even while inside and for how long? I was wondering if the chicks can stay in this box until they are ready for the coop. If yes, then what is the best way to help them and keep them safe and secure? I can build a brooder if needed, if this is needed, then I have some plans in place. Am curious, so that I can take good care of them. Please help
 
Hello.

First question I would ask is, how big is the box?
*That the chicks have PLENTY of room to get away from
a heat lamp. In essence, don't overcook them.

If the temp is fifty, yes they need some heat. But I assume
they are in your house, not outside? Still a little heat is nice.

Not a fan of cardboard box for any legenth of time. They tend
to pick up odors quickly. I like a plastic tub for different reasons.

I would probably keep them in the house for a bit yet. Not quite
brooder time to me. But others may disagree.

But watch them, and ask questions as you need.

Spook
 
Yes, you'll want a heat lamp on them even though they are inside. And leave it on 24/7.

Rule of thumb is to start at 95 degrees the first week and lower the temp by 5 degree each week until they are to about 70 degrees. Some chicks will move faster to less heat, some slower. I like to put the lamp at one end of my brooder and their food and water sort of in the middle. This gives them a cooler end they can escape to if they need to. It's also a good set up to be able to tell if you need to drop the temp faster or slower for your chicks.

I personally wouldn't keep them in a cardboard box the entire time. Not only will it get extremely flimsy as it gets wet, it will also absorb the odor. They (typically, again just rule of thumb type thing) need to stay in the brooder until fully feathered, for most breeds this is around 6 weeks. But the actual feathering and not age needs to be taken into consideration. But, 6 weeks with any amount of chickens will put a cardboard box through all it can handle, and then more. Most definitely build them a brooder. Doesn't need to be anything fancy. I have two - one that they can stay in for the first week or two, with really nothing in it other than the lamp, food and water. Then we have a larger one for as they outgrow they "baby chick" stage and start becoming curious wanting to explore and have fun. It has small starter roosts in it, a swing, a couple boxes for them to crawl in and around and several ledges for them. Both are made out of toy boxes my father made for my kids when they were young (they're huge lol). I just replaced lids on them with screen and outfitted the inside of the largest one with all the fun stuff.

As for bedding/litter; nothing cedar - anything else you might want to use is pretty much ok. I use paper or paper towels for their time in the smaller brooder (1-2 weeks) and once they move I've used everything from sand, to shavings, to leaves, pine straw and hay. Hay or shavings is what I would recommend. Sand is much easier than anything else to clean out, but my brooders are in the house and that makes a big, big mess as they start getting older.
 
k..i will start the brooder in the morning and they are almost 2 weeks of age... so, i will put some toys in it for them. My coop i used today, but, realized it needs some repairs and had way to much air flow, so that is why I put them in the box and asked these questions...sand is available and close by, so will go with that..they seem pretty exploring, as I watched them in the coop and they took to it rather quickly, will make the repairs and they have a roosting lodge in it's corner of the run...I have chick starter, and the farmer told me to mix pellets with it in about 2 weeks time is this good? I will also give them some scratch, what is a good time for that? thank you both very much...
 
Hello and welcome to BYC!

I find that a really cheap and easy way to brood chicks is in the Rubbermaid storage bins... or knock-off brand similar bins. they are nice and deep and you can get them in some really huge sizes when you have a lot of chicks or for when they get older. I cut a hole in the lid and attach an old screen or chicken wire to keep them from flying out as they learn to hop up on their waterer and feeder. It also keeps my curious cat from getting into it.
 
On the scratch - Depends on breed. My most sensitive can handle it at 6 weeks. Start low and keep low. Keep scratch grains as minority (< 25%) of feed applied. Free range birds can probably tolerate more than confined birds since former can balance diet with more vegetable matter. With mine, I will usually use their starter feed before 6 weeks when I take them out. I just throw a bit out on the ground for them.

My feeding system is something along these line (again, it all depends on breed and your individual chicks) -Chick starter until 8-10 weeks, then grower mash until about 16 weeks then mixing with grower pellets until they're on just pellets - until 20 weeks or first egg lay. Then layer pellets. I will usually mix some cracked corn, too, with the layer pellets.
 
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G’Day from down under mrchickflick
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Welcome & Congratulations!

You have already received some good advice but I wanted to share some links with you that you might find helpful:

This is a link to the Raising Baby Chicks Forum: https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/11/raising-baby-chicks

The Learning Centre: https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center

And, if you would like to chat to folks in your area, a link to finding your State thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/26/where-am-i-where-are-you ‘Find your State’s thread

Good luck!

I hope you enjoy being a BYC member. There are lots of friendly and very helpful folks here so not only is it overflowing with useful information it is also a great place to make friends and have some fun.

If you would like to share pictures and stories of your flock, you have come to the right place. BYC’ers never tire of these and do not back away slowly or commence eye rolling when the photo album or home videos come out
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Yes, everyone has already helped a ton. I built my brooder, in my house that I am building, construction has stopped, so I thought it would be a safe and secure place..I will post some pics later today. I have found the learning center and other great info tabs...the state link will be of good interest.. thanks for the feed info that will help with the chicks development...they will be free range and have already read post on that, lots of good info in there..

by the way the chicks love their new brooder, have been bouncing, flying and stretching their wings from the 1st min I put them in it...will be utilizing some toys and roosting pole in the next day or two
 

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