Having your brooders in the house

cochinbantam-lover

Songster
10 Years
May 1, 2009
1,207
2
169
Wisconsin
Hi,
I read about the problem someone was having with the brooder in the home. I have asthma and this concerns me. I looked it up and found some interesting but disturbing facts about a lung disease you can get from the feather dust.

I am not a dummy
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and I am going to take some extra precautions that I did not think of before.

For one I am going to keep them in a small spare bedroom with the door closed and the window open for ventilation, I have an air cleaner that I have in my bedroom in the winter, I will put this in for extra help with the dust. The chicks won't have the dust until they are older with a full body of feathers that is true isn't it?

I want to keep them in my home till they are a bit older so I'm hoping my plans will prevent any health issues for hubby & me!
 
The dust is from the shavings as well as from the chicks. I noticed an increase in "dust" starting when the chicks were about a week old when the started feathering. Keeping the door closed will help reduce the dust to the rest of the house. With a window open just make sure the chicks can't catch a draft so to speak, monitor the temp of the room during the day and during the night. Depending on what type of air purifier you have, you will have to clean it daily.
 
If you have asthma, I'd seriously reconsider raising them in your home. But you, of course, know what's best for you. Especially since you are the only one who can guage your asthma.

Having them in a spare room with the door closed might help. Consider wearing a mask when you go in and out. Chickens make a lot of dust. You also might want to consider changing the bedding daily. You're going to have to really clean that room when you're done using it.

I really don't tolerate them in my home more than two weeks. I usually wait to get chicks until after it gets a bit warmer so I can just put the brooder with a heat lamp out in the henhouse.
 
You might also consider Stall-Dri, which are pine pellets, designed for horses. Work fine for chicks and much less dusty; cost a little more but not bad. Won't help the chicks' dust but no dust from wood shavings. Need paper towels over them for a day or two, til they learn what food is, just as for wood shavings.
 
I had them in one room and that room was covered from head to toe with dust. I had to wipe the wallls down all the way to the baseboards. If that bedroom as carpet i would really think twice about it too. all that dust settles in all the fibers and will be very hard to get it all out. Maybe having it professionally cleaned after they are out. I couldn't believe all the dust that 18 chicks made in 4 weeks. I even cleaning twice a day wiping everything down. I think why I got sick was i would sit in the room with them for periods of time cuz I wanted to bond and i think just being in the room with them for all that time caused a problem for me. I would suggest wearing a mask too if you have asthma. I am very healthy 36 year old that never smoked and I workout and the dust wreaked havoc on my lungs. Just listen to you body and if you notice a sensitivity them move them out.
 
I used pine pellets and the dust was minimal.
I recently moved them to a larger brooder (4 weeks old) and used pine shavings and it is instantly 100 times dustier.

I will replace all the shavings with pine pellets as soon as I get back to the feed store. Much better for having them in the house.
Shavings are great for deep litter outside
 

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