February too early?

[birdsofparadise]

Quote:
Thank You! I tried to start both pheasants & ducks in my basement when I lived in Michigan and the mess and smell was horrible. Plus, since the heater was in the basement, it sucked up the smell and distributed it through out the house. Iʻd say wait until you can arrange to keep them in the garage at least. That is unless you have access to industrial strength Fabreeze.

 

[Akane]

I'm impatiently waiting here in Iowa for the breeds I want to be available this year. I keep my chicks inside for sometimes 8 weeks or more anyway so I'm mostly concerned about shipping in these cold temps. I put 8-10week olds out in november when it was below freezing with a heat lamp and they are doing fine so april-may temps should be just fine for Feb hatched chicks so long as you have a solid draft free coop and possibly a heat lamp. I'm just dreading how many extra packing peanuts I might have to deal with to keep the others warm enough if I order right off in Feb.

I don't notice any bothersome smell unless I'm right next to the brooder. Even now I have 3 full grown bantams inside and I only noticed smell when I was bent over their cage adding more height to it. No one else has said anything about it either. But all the people that come to my house are used to pets. Every animal just has it's own smell as do people. My nose is so sensitive I will notice the scent of a person who has spent a few hours in my house after they have left. That doesn't mean the scent is bad. My stepdad drove me nuts living at home because he thought every scent he could pick up was horrible. Before I cleaned the guinea pig cages he'd complain and 5 mins after I cleaned them he'd complain because then they'd smell like fresh hay and shavings. I thought it smelled great but he'd go on and on about how horrible it was.

For people not used to animals and just the normal scent that every animal and their bedding has even when perfectly clean they can be quite against it.

 

[riley]

i thank you will be fine i just ordered my baby chicks, i was woried about the same thing but a just did it anyway

 

[WoodlandWoman]

Shipping in such cold temperatures is what scares me. I won't have them shipped in really cold or really hot weather. You read more threads about dead chicks that were shipped, that time of year. Either because the hatchery or the buyer lives in a cold area. It's really sad.

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

You can order your chicks in February to have them delivered later in the season. That way you are first in line to get the breeds you want, but you don't have to worry about shipping chicks in cold weather.
I ordered in February and had the chicks delivered the first of May. All of mine came thorugh fine and I got all the breeds I wanted. Before that I kept hearing of people that got boxes of little frozen chicks.

What are you ordering?

 

[tygab]

couple of thoughts...
If ordering, I'd wait until late april (yes, really) for this area. It is just too cold otherwise, and you'll be on the uptick of weather improving, even with keeping them in the house for a while.

But, I was going to say if you don't want to order, the NE chicken scene seems very active based on this board... there will be swaps with chicks in the spring, and we're probably hatching our own as well. won't be BRs, but a cross of EE X Wyandotte. Point is, the locals here can probably supply you with chicks or even hens.

Good luck!

 

[patandchickens]

Those in colder areas considering ordering February chicks should go back in the BYC archives to posts from LAST February, in 'raising chicks' and 'everything else chicken'. Look at all the people who had 100% mortality in their order.

Might make you think...


Pat

 

[gumpsgirl]

For your area that might be to chilly. I'd see if you couldn't still put your order in for shipment towards the middle or end of April, which shouldn't be any problem. That way you won't miss out on the breeds that you want (because you've ordered them ahead of time) and will be getting them when they have a better chance of surviving the trip.