Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[bobbi-j]

Last time I used a big, metal stock tank like they do in the farm supply stores. They have plenty of room to move around and get away from the heat source if they get too hot, and they aren't able to fly out of it until they're at least a few weeks old. They don't have corners to pile up in, either. I've also put a metal rim from a tractor tire in my coop (no other birds in there at the time) with a light over that and food and water of course, but that was for a smaller amount of chickens.

I think a brooder can be as much or as little as you want it to be. As long as they're protected from drafts and predators, have heat,(yet enough room to get away from the heat), water and food, I think they're good to go. Heck, I've even brooded chicks in a cardboard box for a week in my laundry room with a clamp-on lamp for heat and they did just fine. Why in my house? Just for the enjoyment of being able to peek in on them and watch them. I also enjoy watching them hatch - I've been known to sit up all night and watch chicks hatching... Sorry - I distracted myself!

 

[JenellYB]

Nipples may be better now, my experiences with them were some years ago. Not with chickens, but with rabbits, and dogs.

With the rabbits, there was a brief interest among my rabbit friends in setting up tubing and nipples in rabbitries, but the main problems many ran into, myself included, was both freezing in winter, and the water heating up so in the lines in our very hot summers, it was just too hot for the animals to drink...sometimes it could scald you right out of the nipples!

The heat problem wasn't so much with the dogs, mostly because they learned pretty quickly to sit or lay under them with their heads pushed up against them, so the water trickled constantly over their clever little heads! Since the water was flowing pretty much constantly through the lines, it didn't get much chance to heat up! Was pretty messy in the kennels and wasted a lot fo water,though. I had the same problem trying to use them on outdoor faucets out in the yard.

But a problem with both for rabbits and dogs was clogging with mineral build-up out of the water for a lot of people, either lime/calcium, or iron ore deposits.

EDIT...I see now some of you are talking about nipples placed into BUCKETS, not what I experienced years ago with them in pvc pipes or tubing firectly connected to a water source. Interesting.

 

[featherz]

I would like to here more about brooder setups too.

This will be the first go-round for me and after seeing what I've done to my vegetable seedlings, I'm losing faith that I'll be able to keep the chicks alive until they are feathered out. I'd really like to see more pictures if that's possible. I understand better when I can see what someone is trying to describe to me. Thank you!

Edited: Sorry!

(not an OT, but what the heck it's related)
I usually let broodies take care of hatching, but when I hatch myself and have to (shudder) do it in the house because it's sub freezing outside, I have a non-OT brooder. I use an ecoglow. Here's a pic of what I use for indoor hatches, although I replaced those paper towels with cardboard.. Ecoglow on the right, nipple water bucket on the left. After a few weeks I move the chicks and ecoglow to the barn. The cage is bigger than it looks, about 4' by 2'.

 

[bestpractice]

Brooders: Anyone ever used the poultry nipples for young chicks with any success? I'd like to try it with my meaty batch this spring but wasn't sure if chicks that young could learn to implement them.

Sorry, I misunderstood the topic -- I would have expected brooders to be titled as such -- my bad!!! I came here for Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

If your topic is brooders and you want comprehensive information with some great ideas go here http://www.youtube.com/results?sear...622l0l6080l17l14l0l0l0l0l435l2002l2-3.1.2l6l0

If you would like some great information about "watering nipples" and a variety of creative ideas of putting them to work for you try this link:
http://www.youtube.com/results?sear...9l0l182506l15l14l0l6l0l1l419l1009l2-1.1.1l3l0

And if you would like to get a ton of information from a variety of people on the topic try BYC's own link for this specific topic: https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/11/raising-baby-chicks

 

[featherz]

Haven't had the problem with the heating up, but I am using plastic 5 gallon buckets. Can definitely see where it would be a problem in pvc lines, tho. We have well water with almost zero mineral content (no scale here LOL) so no problems YET with minerals. I use ACV to keep the algae down.

I did try a rabbit waterer on chicks once - the kind with the ball. It DID work, but leaked constantly. Definitely not ideal.

Nipples may be better now, my experiences with them were some years ago. Not with chickens, but with rabbits, and dogs.

With the rabbits, there was a brief interest among my rabbit friends in setting up tubing and nipples in rabbitries, but the main problems many ran into, myself included, was both freezing in winter, and the water heating up so in the lines in our very hot summers, it was just too hot for the animals to drink...sometimes it could scald you right out of the nipples!

The heat problem wasn't so much with the dogs, mostly because they learned pretty quickly to sit or lay under them with their heads pushed up against them, so the water trickled constantly over their clever little heads! Since the water was flowing pretty much constantly through the lines, it didn't get much chance to heat up! Was pretty messy in the kennels and wasted a lot fo water,though. I had the same problem trying to use them on outdoor faucets out in the yard.

But a problem with both for rabbits and dogs was clogging with mineral build-up out of the water for a lot of people, either lime/calcium, or iron ore deposits.

 

[JenellYB]

Thank you, Fred. I apoligize for that error. Since there isn't has has not been any kind of commercial poulty raising industry down here, the extrmems of heat and humidity here are just not suitable for it, i wasunaware there might be such sources where there is such industry. I don't know how widespread across the country that is, areas of large commercial poultry industry, where such birds might accessable like that, but would just assume that's available in a relativley few parts of the country, to few potential buyers like that.
Yes, the $12-$15 ranges seems pretty much standard down here, usually the most common and popular heavy layers or dual breeds, mostly old stand-bys, but also some of the newer production breeds, though not the really commerical layers, price range usually depending on how many you buy. But generally small farm raisers, and limited times of the year, not when out heat starts to get extreme.

Misunderstandings are easy on a forum, even when unintended.

Started pullets from Meyer's and likely from Townline are indeed available for as little as $6.50, provided the buyer wants the commercial layer offered, buys 50 or more, picks up at the hatchery, and doesn't mind that the beaks have been trimmed.

Those smaller flock keepers who raise POL pullets of other breeds would not likely be selling at that price point. I have sold them for $12-$15, which seems, to me, to be about the going rate around here. As always, your mileage may vary.

 

[Beekissed]

I assume you want to set up something fancier with pvc pipe, but I just use hardware store buckets - 5 gallon for the chickens, little lidded two quart buckets for the chicks. I drill a hole in the lid when I put the holes in for the nipples so the water will flow and that's that.

Me? Fancy? No way! I'm going with a bucket. I made my own feeder once with PVC pipe and I found it wanting for my husbandry style and feeding, so no more PVC inventions for me. Buckets I have and I don't need to buy.

I don't know if anyone saw the deal I got on the red poultry nipples on Amazon.com a few pages back but I got a 5 pk/$9.25 w/ FREE shipping. Everywhere else I found them would have been $22 w/shipping for a qty. of 4.

 

[featherz]

Neil Grassbaugh (I hope that's spelled right) here on the forum sells the ones I used. They are very inexpensive - don't remember what he charged but it was very reasonable.

Have also bought from QC supply. I have a whole bag of them here since I'll throw up a waterer when needed (gallon milk jugs work fine but leak after a while). I use the push in type.. 11/32 drill bit, push, all done.

Me? Fancy? No way! I'm going with a bucket. I made my own feeder once with PVC pipe and I found it wanting for my husbandry style and feeding, so no more PVC inventions for me. Buckets I have and I don't need to buy.

I don't know if anyone saw the deal I got on the red poultry nipples on Amazon.com a few pages back but I got a 5 pk/$9.25 w/ FREE shipping. Everywhere else I found them would have been $22 w/shipping for a qty. of 4.

 

[JenellYB]

A couple thoughts. Is this shed tall enough that you will have room to get in and work in each level?
The other is, since you plan to later divide the chicks as they grow bigger into the other two levels, why not divide them into those 2 levels to begin with? Wouldn't 33 chicks on each level to start reduce risks of losses 'piling up' with 100 chicks?

back to the brooder post,

new at this but I need some input, I plan on raising a few batches of CX this summer, I have a 5x6' shed on skids I intend to use for a brooder. My idea is to make it 3 levels, the bottom used for 100 chicks, at 10-14 days move and divide them to the other higher "floors" until getting them in the tractors.

I'll use Fred's idea of 3 lights on that 1st floor, 2 lights for redundancy on the next 2 levels....this will allow me to have 2 batches in the same brooder at the same time,,,,,I plan on incorporating removable vents and a main water reservoir, I intend to set this up and then do temp checks at chick level to make adjustments needed before they arrive,,,,any ideas or inputs welcome

a farmer attempting to make a bit of profit (isn't that always the case in farming?)

 

[Young Farmer]

I have read almost every post in this thread. I am 19 and I love listening to ol' Timers. I am getting my farming/poultry knowledge from any one I can. One day I hope to be as wise as you guys. I have had chickens for 4 years and I am just now taking my "farm" seresouly.