Connecticut!

[PamB]

Beth!! Look at you! I just saw you got the Friend Award! Awww....that is nice

 

[Beth G.]

Thanks Pam

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[jimmythechicken]

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congrats beth

 

[Beth G.]

Thanks Jim
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congrats beth

 

[BirdsinBethel]

Hello, so the coop is almost done and I'm thinking about starting to put the chicks out during the day - 4 of them will be 4 weeks old on Wednesday (the 5th is a week older). Does that sound too young to be outside without a heat lamp or anything, just for the daytime? And I have one chick who is MUCH smaller than the others-maybe 1/3 to 1/4 the size of her hatchmates. She just has her wings feathered out and a little tail stub, no other body feathers like her hatch mates. Can she go out with them, or would it be better to keep her in the brooder with maybe one hatchmate to keep her company?
Here they are-the little one is a Partridge Rock, next to her is a Light Brahma, and the other 'front' chick is a SLWyandotte.
Behind them are the Easter Egger (1 week older) and a Barred Rock (she looks smaller because she's not stepping up on the lip of the crate like the first 3 are).
Toffee (the little one) seems ok-eats fine, hangs out with the other chicks, I don't see her getting picked on-but she seems to have barely grown since I got her 3-21st while the others have done nothing but grow! The light brahma is on the smaller side too-but nothing as insubstantial as Toffee the Partridge Rock is!

 

[Beth G.]

Hi,

They are very cute!

I still see alot of fuzz on them. I'd say to only put them out if it's going to be warm out. Today is too cold. You have to worry about flucuating temps when bringing them in and out plus you could be exposing them to things outside and if you bring the older ones back in every night they can bring back to the babies.

I know it's tough to keep them in but, don't rush things. Mareks, Corzya, and Cocci are outside and that is what I worry about with the really small ones. I tend to wait till they are 6 weeks old to put them outside. Or sometimes I bring them to a spot in the grass where no chickens have ever been to let them run around outside while I sit with them and then bring them back in.

Best Wishes,
Beth

edited....BTW, if they were raised with a broody the above is void b/c the broody helps the babies with temps and the babies are exposed from hatching already to things so its different.
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[new chick 203]

Today is so chilly that our broody is keeping everyone in under her feathers (although, since she is a banty i think they will outgrow her in no time).

Beth G. :

Hi,

They are very cute!

I still see alot of fuzz on them. I'd say to only put them out if it's going to be warm out. Today is too cold. You have to worry about flucuating temps when bringing them in and out plus you could be exposing them to things outside and if you bring the older ones back in every night they can bring back to the babies.

I know it's tough to keep them in but, don't rush things. Mareks, Corzya, and Cocci are outside and that is what I worry about with the really small ones. I tend to wait till they are 6 weeks old to put them outside. Or sometimes I bring them to a spot in the grass where no chickens have ever been to let them run around outside while I sit with them and then bring them back in.

Best Wishes,
Beth

edited....BTW, if they were raised with a broody the above is void b/c the broody helps the babies with temps and the babies are exposed from hatching already to things so its different.
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[BirdsinBethel]

Beth & New Chick, thanks for the advice..wasn't putting them out today in any event, MUCH too chilly... but I hadn't thought about the 'more feathered' ones bringing nasties back with them to the smaller ones... sigh. They're going nuts in that dog crate- the BR especially keeps trying to fly or something, and every time I open the crate I have to be sure the cats aren't around as the BR and at least one other try to hop out and run around the living room every time

So, 6 weeks then for outside, except for short supervised periods? No issue putting them where no chickens have been, since they're my first flock!

 

[new chick 203]

I know, you get to a point when they are getting bigger and the dust in the house is just too much. Although, since our Bobby is raising this batch I really miss having the fuzzy bums inside to bond with. They aren't nearly as attached to us as the ones we raised inside in the brooder box.
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[HoldensLandingChickGirl]

We got some new babies this morning

These are my 4 ameracaunas that i had to order because we didn't get any in our rainbow layer assortment, lol. Because, you know, we need more than 21 chickens to supply eggs to 4 people

They're so cute - and so much less noisy than 25 chicks!