Ducklings and goslings (brooder ideas)

[the_finch_family]

Hi!
I have 12 beautiful eggs from my girls waiting to be incubated, and I REALLY want to include a goose or two in the batch this year.
Does anyone have some good mess-free (to an extend) brooder ideas?
The biggest clutch I've had was 6, so while 14 will be the maximum (I might bring some to my friend's broody girls), I will still be keeping a bunch at my place.

O could build a brooder, but id like to use what i have if possible.
I have a 3m x 1.5m greenhouse which just needs to be given a small gate to prevent escapees while I enter and needs to be predator proofed from the bottom, then of course i need to drag my electric cable there for the heat lamp.
I do also have an old 2m x 1.2m coop that I could convert to a brooder.
Would it be a good idea to keep them indoors for the first week or would that be unnecessary?
And which would be better? The wooden coop or the greenhouse?

Last time I brooded my babies indoors, and it was.... not a good idea.
Though there was literally still snow outside so I didn't have much of a choice.

Thanks in advance!

 

[LifeSimpleAndSweet]

Hi!
I have 12 beautiful eggs from my girls waiting to be incubated, and I REALLY want to include a goose or two in the batch this year.
Does anyone have some good mess-free (to an extend) brooder ideas?
The biggest clutch I've had was 6, so while 14 will be the maximum (I might bring some to my friend's broody girls), I will still be keeping a bunch at my place.

O could build a brooder, but id like to use what i have if possible.
I have a 3m x 1.5m greenhouse which just needs to be given a small gate to prevent escapees while I enter and needs to be predator proofed from the bottom, then of course i need to drag my electric cable there for the heat lamp.
I do also have an old 2m x 1.2m coop that I could convert to a brooder.
Would it be a good idea to keep them indoors for the first week or would that be unnecessary?
And which would be better? The wooden coop or the greenhouse?

Last time I brooded my babies indoors, and it was.... not a good idea.
Though there was literally still snow outside so I didn't have much of a choice.

Thanks in advance!

I kept my brooder outside from day one.
I built a warming tray for them and they were quite happy without any more heat than that.

It's hard to say which would be better. Both would probably work just fine. If you post pictures we might have more suggestions.

 

[the_finch_family]

I kept my brooder outside from day one.
I built a warming tray for them and they were quite happy without any more heat than that.

It's hard to say which would be better. Both would probably work just fine. If you post pictures we might have more suggestions.

Here's the greenhouse. I think I'll go with using that, since I trust it being warmer in there during the summer.
I just made the base and stairs for it last night. All in a days work

Do you have pictures of the warming tray? I haven't thought of that, but it definitely sounds like a very good idea!
Is it sort of like a little hut with the heat in it?
And how big is it for how many birds?

 

[LifeSimpleAndSweet]

Here is the thread I started about it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-diy-brooder-plate.1574397/

 

[the_finch_family]

Here is the thread I started about it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-diy-brooder-plate.1574397/

Thank you!