Ended Contest #2 Creative Brooder- 5th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-a-long

[chadtheartist]

if it isn't too late to enter. here is mine. brand new and awaiting new chicks on Friday! I am enlarging it from the back side. It has windows on the front and side for ventilation and so the other chickens can watch them. (see last photo.)

 

[Sueg4332]

RED NECK Brinsea type BROODER I love the Brinsea brooder warmer but have been able to afford one $149 or so. Every time I save the money up something else comes up.
Any way this bun warmer on a piece of heavy wire works great. the chicks sleep at night when very small and as they get older they climb all over it.. I always leave a light on in case the bun warmer dies. It is very old and has raised puppies and kitten too. I just wash it in the washer to clean it. PS I use a black light for heat. Plus it seems to be calming at night...babies just 2 and 3 day old
thought everyone would get a good lol out of this one....

 

[sillycmoy]

So excited.... Picked up 2 more shipping crates today, going to be making 2 more baby grow out brooders. I just love them, because I can also use them as a small coop if needed for separation if needed. Or also storage of feed or straw.

 

[lsmith]

Where do you pick up the crates? And do they charge for them??

 

[sillycmoy]

Where do you pick up the crates? And do they charge for them??

I get them from a local guy that works for Boeing. They get shipments daily in crates, of all sizes. He brings them home, because they just break them down and throw them away. He charges $5.00 for the smaller and it goes up. He gets ones that you could easy turn into a walk in chicken coop, but I already have a nice coop. But today he had one that was 6 feet high by 5 feet, he was charging $60 for that one, and you would need several people and a trailer to move that thing. They are really sturdy, heavy duty wood, and all you would have to do is cut out vents, and doors. But they are so thick that they are great for insulation for the babies. I like the smaller ones that are around 38 long by 24 high by 24 deep. They are perfect for the chicks to grow up in. I cut out doors, put in a roost bar, and usually a few 1 inch circle vents in the back. I picked up one today that is 4 feet by 3 feet, and I'm going to make this one into a baby brooder since I have 43 eggs in the incubator, I think my dog crate might be a little cramped with that many.

If you live where they do shipments of 4 wheelers or snow mobiles, I've heard they come in shipping crates, you could see if you could pick some up from them. You could easily put 2 of them together too. Good luck! Try Craigslist or maybe some Facebook Yard Sales page local.

 

[TeaChick]

Saving my place.

 

[Sclark73]

I originally made this base last year to fit my brooder heater but since it's too cold outside now I had to modify it to work in my living room. The stand it's sitting on was just made today into another similar brooder. Also added a perch after photo was taken.

 

[BridgetBarger]

Neither of this are that creative but they are easy to use and clean.

My master bathtub that I never use. East to use easy to sanitize afterwards.

A small stock tank

 

[michaelf]

I use large plastic containers until they get bigger then I move them to a brooder/growout outside. The plastic containers are cheap easily cleaned and to store. I put the wood chips in my flower beds when they become dirty. When I am done using I wash out with a water hose let dry and put in my storage building. That is usually during winter. Lol! We hatch a lot of chicks out.

 

[bluehousefarm]

We have several brooders, but I like these the best for the tiny chicks or ducklings. They are Christmas tree storage containers and we drill holes in the lid. It is nice that the ducklings have a good distance to walk from their messy eating and flinging water all over the place area to their sleeping area. To cut down on the water mess I put the drinker on a plastic basket that once held strawberries on top of a plastic pan to catch the spills.