Does she have enough feathers

[lissalicious]

I deeply love my chickens, but I want then outside and they do too. They are about 5 weeks old now and to me they look feathered enough. I live in Utah so we have super bipolar weather. Today we have a high of 50. It still gets down in the 40s at night. I've taken them out during the warm sunny weather and now they just cry all day long. I think they really want to move on to bigger and better things do you think they are ready?

 

[Judy]

I would, but I feel pretty strongly about their being outdoors. I assume the heat lamp is off? Also, you've started to acclimate them by taking them for outings, which is good.

The last batch of chicks I brooded were in the coop from the day I rouht them home from the feed store. Weather was in the 50 to 75 range. I have a good sized coop with a room insidfe that's about 5' x 5'. which served as their brooder. I hung a heat lamp in the middle of the room. by 3 weeks of age they were avoiding it, even though I'd raised it several times, and I found them asleep in a corner as far away from it as they could get. (there was a thick layer of hay on the floor, which is dirt.) So I turned the heat lamp off. They did fine.

 

[donrae]

They're telling you they're ready to move out! It has nothing to do with how much you love them, it's doing what's best for them. They need to be chickens~

 

[lissalicious]

I know that they need to be chickens, but I don't want them to get too cold and die!

 

[Judy]

I don't want them to get too cold and die!

I promise you tey won't. when you se them panting and holding their wings a little away from their body as summer heat sets in, you will wish for these temps for them.