Brooding In Plasitc Sterilite Tubs

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jkgreer

jkgreer

In the Brooder
Feb 27, 2020
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I have tried to brood a total of 60 chicks (20 at a time) in plastic sterilile tubs, you know... the ones you get at wal mart. All three broods died completeley. I am trying to find out if the plastic is bad for the chicks. On the other hand I have a really crappy Post office that lets the chicks stay overnite before they call me to come pick them up. This was on all three broods. Is it the plastic or is it the fact that the chicks were in the shipping box without food & water for 96 hours (4 days)
 
Chicks can go a few days without food or water since they still have the yolk inside them (up to 5 days, max) that's why they can be shipped. Many folks use plastic tubs without issue so maybe there's another factor at play. What do they eat? What's the temperature and how are they heated? Do they have enough cool areas? What's the bedding?
and chance of febreeze, air freshener, carbon monoxide, overheated Teflon pans?
 
They are fed 16% protein Chick starter, The temp in the brooder is 95 for the first week, ubfortunateley I have not had any chicks last past 4 days. They are heated by small forced air heaters I made out of repurposed food cans and nichrome wire. the bedding is pine shavings. No air fresheners orTeflon. Could the nichrome wire (basically a heating element) be emitting carbon monoxide?
 
It is unusual to lose everything if they all arrived alive.
I'm not too fond of the plastic Tupperware style brooders. They aren't really big enough for more than a few days for 20 chicks. The space can't grow as the chicks grow and I suspect, it was too hot. They only need one small hot spot like with a broody hen and the rest of the space should be cool.
In warm weather I brood the chicks in the coop. In cold weather, I use large cardboard moving boxes from Lowes or HD. They only cost about a dollar or so and you can double or triple them as the chicks get bigger.
If your brooder is in the house, room temperature, you don't really need any elaborate heating system. Depending on the size of the tub, I would say a 75 or 100 watt ceramic heat emitter in a brooder lamp fixture would be plenty. 20 chicks can huddle and keep themselves warm for the most part.
While it won't kill them, 16% chick starter is a bit low. I wouldn't go with less than 18% for baby chicks and I like to start off with about 20% for the first couple weeks. The younger a bird is, the higher protein they need to build their body and immune system.
The amino acid profile of the protein is important as well, but any manufacturer would take that into consideration in their formula.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for your advice. I think the loss is due to the post office not notifying me immediatley when the chicks arrive. At any rate the chicks are guranteed for 48 hrs after I get them so the hatchery is replacing all of them. I will call the post office tomorrow and let them know to expect the shipment. The tubs are 30 gallon capacity and I have three of them so thats 6 or 7 chicks per tub. Is thatenough space for them to grow enough to maintane their own body heat or at least until they're 6 weeks old?
 

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