First brooder setup—what temp and bedding for day 1?

[hatchbloom]

Total beginner. What starting brooder temp do you use in °F, and is paper towel OK for the first day or two? Any simple checklist for waterer/feed placement to avoid pasty butt?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Are these newly hatched, or are you getting them mailed or delivered from a hatchery? As a general rule you want a warm area roughly 90-95F (whether that's a heat lamp or a plate of some sort) and a cooler zone that's 10F or more cooler. One big contributor to pasty butt is overheating so giving them areas to get away from heat is key.

Paper towels are fine.

Only real advice with food & water placement is don't put them right next to each other (so you avoid feed wet unintentionally) and don't have them right under the heat source. If these are newborns they may not eat or drink up to 72 hrs.

 

[ChickQueen77]

My brooder temp is usually about 90 degrees

I put my chicks in a water tank and I will usually get a board to put a waterer on so they can't kick shavings into the tray and I will out the water right up against the wall and the feeder in the middle

here is a pic of how I set up my brooder

 

[hatchbloom]

Are these newly hatched, or are you getting them mailed or delivered from a hatchery? As a general rule you want a warm area roughly 90-95F (whether that's a heat lamp or a plate of some sort) and a cooler zone that's 10F or more cooler. One big contributor to pasty butt is overheating so giving them areas to get away from heat is key.

Paper towels are fine.

Only real advice with food & water placement is don't put them right next to each other (so you avoid feed wet unintentionally) and don't have them right under the heat source. If these are newborns they may not eat or drink up to 72 hrs.

Hatched in an incubator

 

[rosemarythyme]

Hatched in an incubator

So I haven't hatched so not sure what the "rules" are the first 24 hours or so. So I don't know if you might need to restrict how much are they have to move around in, or to keep the temperature more close to a consistent 90-95 with less variance outside of that.

Past 2 days old or so you definitely want to give them the option of a little more room and warm + cooler areas to help avoid pasty butt.

 

[Debbie292d]

So I haven't hatched so not sure what the "rules" are the first 24 hours or so. So I don't know if you might need to restrict how much are they have to move around in, or to keep the temperature more close to a consistent 90-95 with less variance outside of that.

Past 2 days old or so you definitely want to give them the option of a little more room and warm + cooler areas to help avoid pasty butt.

I hatch a ton, and you pretty much nailed it. It doesn't matter how much room as they barely move the first day or two, but that's why the temp is crucial, as they don't move out of the way of it, at first. They'll lie there and pant.