Can thry have "too much" room?

[kcflock]

Maybe a stupid question but these are my first chicks. We intended on getting 10 but I... chickened out... and we got 5.. They are currently in a rather large rubbermaid storage container.. I want to keep them in there for about 6 weeks or a little longer, so I was afraid to get so mamy they wouldnt fit when they got bigger. How much space do they need that young? Id go back and get 5 more Im just worried about over crowding before the coop is ready.

Anyway, the box seems huge with 5 2 day old chicks, can you have too much space for chicks?

 

[kcflock]

Also, they told me they were 2 days old but they look bigger than the chicks that tractor supply told me were a week old?? Does it really matter if they are a few days off?

Ps-THEY ARE SO CUTE!!! <3

 

[SunHwaKwon]

You can, but its not likely with 5 chicks and just a rubbermaid bin. As long as they are not getting lost trying to find the warm side and the food and water, it is not too big. They are going to outgrow it quick, don't worry. Six weeks is a long time to keep chicks in a tote. I put mine outside around day 2 or 3 normally, week 3 at the very latest!

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Your tractor supply chicks are bantams, that's why the others look so big in comparison.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Maybe a stupid question but these are my first chicks. We intended on getting 10 but I... chickened out... and we got 5.. They are currently in a rather large rubbermaid storage container.. I want to keep them in there for about 6 weeks or a little longer, so I was afraid to get so mamy they wouldnt fit when they got bigger. How much space do they need that young? Id go back and get 5 more Im just worried about over crowding before the coop is ready.

Anyway, the box seems huge with 5 2 day old chicks, can you have too much space for chicks?

How big is a rather big storage container? They are more than 2 days old----I see feathers starting. Make sure you are not using a heat light that's to hot----you only want to heat one end of this tote----not the end where the food and water is. Check with a thermometer or watch the chicks---if they are trying to hide behind things to get away from the heat-(like they are doing in this pic)---its probably to hot.

 

[junebuggena]

Also, they told me they were 2 days old but they look bigger than the chicks that tractor supply told me were a week old?? Does it really matter if they are a few days off?

Ps-THEY ARE SO CUTE!!! <3

Three look like they are about 1 to 1.5 weeks. The other two, with more feathers, look like they are about 2.5 to 3 weeks old. No, no such thing as too much room. More space is much better than too little space.

 

[junebuggena]

And the size difference is more due to the two older ones being bantam and the others being large breeds.

 

[kcflock]

How big is a rather big storage container? They are more than 2 days old----I see feathers starting. Make sure you are not using a heat light that's to hot----you only want to heat one end of this tote----not the end where the food and water is. Check with a thermometer or watch the chicks---if they are trying to hide behind things to get away from the heat-(like they are doing in this pic)---its probably to hot.

They are outside in the sun in this picture, but we will make sure to only heat part
Its a 45 gallon tote I think.

 

[barred2rock]

I have five Barred Rocks that I had in the largest Rubbermaid container Walmart sales. At three to 4 weeks it felt like they were getting crowded. Wednesday I built a 3x larger space for them in my downstairs studio, currently used as storage. Now they're able to run around, jump up & down from their roost, have room to scatch without getting bedding in their food, ext. They appear to be much more content and acting more like chickens.