Chicks in warm/hot weather?

[chickp]

Hi there,
So I just ordered some chicks from my pet chicken and dh and I were going to set up a brooder. But it occurred to me that they'll be here in mid-June (according to the calendar) and it will be getting hot here in Atlanta. Do I still need a heat bulb for them all the time, or can they be in the sunshine for part of the time? I'm not going to leave them, of course, just wondering if anyone has used the sun for warmth or if you need the focused bulb when they are very young.

I'm a total newb. TOTAL. and so is dh. But we are VERY excited about our chicks-to-be, two Buff Orps and two Barred Rocks.

 

[urbanfarmer101]

I got my chicks In july, and july in iowa is sultry. I used a heat lamp per the directions that I received with my chicks. They love the heat lamp-especially at night.

 

[gritsar]

My chicks will be arriving in June also. They will be brooded on the screened porch. I will use a heat lamp as long as they need it, particularly at night.
The rule of thumb is 90-95 degrees the first week, decreasing by five degrees a week until you get down to 70 degrees, at which time they should be fine without the light.
Having said that, it's better to let your chicks be your guide. Huddling under the light and peeping loudly, they're too cold. As far away from the heat lamp and sometimes panting or holding their little wings out, too hot.

 

[elmo]

Here's what I did when I raised chicks last spring and summer. In daytime, I put them in a little pen on our screened breezeway. They were fine with the ambient air temps. By late July, it was pretty much equal to what they'd be experiencing in a heated brooder anyway!

At night time, though, I brought them inside to their brooder and heat lamp so they could stay warm through the night. As they grew and feathered out, it was pretty easy to see when they didn't need the heat lamp anymore. They'd settle in for the night at the opposite end of the brooder.

 

[chickp]

Thank you! That is very helpful....we have a screened back porch and so that sounds like a good option for daytime after the first week or two. But I will watch the little babies and see how they do, of course.