Dust/Health Issues?...Raising my (6) Day-Old Hatchlings In House

[1hawaiian]

Now that they're a week old I'll be removing them from the plastic tote and placing them in a larger brooder that I made using three LARGE cardboard boxes...(6 ft long x 3 ft wide x 3 ft high).

The floor is 1" wood shavings.
I'm hoping dust will not be a MAJOR/MAJOR issue based on just (6) chicks and 3 ft high cardboard sides

If it presents a problem I'll need to cover the brooder with fiberglass screen.

I'd like to hear your experiences?
And what would you do differently the next time around?

Thanks!

 

[Kraftcrazychick]

It is way worse than you think.

I had 6 chicks inside for about 7 weeks inside a good size box with a screen overtop of it. The room was about 10 x 15 in the basement, mostly finished except the ceiling.

After I took them outside there was a layer of gray cakey dust on everything. The light, the cords, the walls, the floor, the outside of the box. Every single surface got a dusting. It even made dusty cobwebs in between the rafters. I would liken it to drywall dust, it takes that long to clean it.

 

[1hawaiian]

It is way worse than you think.

I had 6 chicks inside for about 7 weeks inside a good size box with a screen overtop of it. The room was about 10 x 15 in the basement, mostly finished except the ceiling.

After I took them outside there was a layer of gray cakey dust on everything. The light, the cords, the walls, the floor, the outside of the box. Every single surface got a dusting. It even made dusty cobwebs in between the rafters. I would liken it to drywall dust, it takes that long to clean it.

MUCH appreciated...I need to get a new plan!!!
Otherwise my WIFEY will put me in the outside coop

Thank you for sharing!!!

 

[azygous]

If there aren't adult chickens to deal with, why not simply brood them in the coop?

I've discovered that the indoor brooder concept is more of a cultural habit than necessity. If you can suspend your preconceptions regarding brooding chicks, all sorts of possibilities open up.

For the first time after raising seven batches of baby chicks indoors under a heat lamp, I discovered the rather new and innovative heating pad system, and I highly recommend it.

Scroll down on this forum for the thread, "Mama-heating-pad in the brooder" thread. Many have contributed our experiences with this new system and we've been coming up with multiple approaches. The best thing about the system is that it very closely recreates the natural heating system of chicks warmed under a mama brooding hen herself.

The next best thing is that it lends itself easily to being set up out in the coop itself, relieving us of all the mess associated with brooding indoors. Yes, I can testify that the dust ends up in places you never dreamed it would.

Check it out. Six days isn't too late to put them under a heating pad cave system. Your wife will think you're brilliant.

 

[1hawaiian]

Thanks for your comments...AND I AM USING THE MAMA HEATING PAD

My chicks LOVE IT!!!

But I am NOT able to raise them in my coop nor outside garage for a variety of reasons in my particular case.

I need to do it inside of my house...so I'm only now thinking about using some type of fly-net/mosquito-net material to cover the top of my cardboard box brooder "hoping" to alleviate the bulk of the dander, dust, etc.
using it like a filter, trapping the fine particulate and rinsing it out every 2-3 days or as needed.

My wife's daBoss and I better be somewhat successful at this or else I'm in the coop