Heat lamps...

[france4862]

Iam using heat lamps in brooder at what age should I stop. I live in Wisconsin and winter is coming

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

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[bobbi-j]

I have another question. It doesn't involve heat lamps but it does involve heat. (or lack there of.) It is very drizzly rainy foggy yucky outside, and it's about 50 degrees. Should I let my chickens out? If (they will) get wet, would they be too cold? One time last year they got wet and it was cold so I blow-dried them, because I didn't know if they'd catch their deaths of colds.

It's been cold, drizzly, rainy, foggy and yucky here, at about 35-40*. My chickens get to decide if they want to be out or not. They really are smart enough to get in out of the rain if they need to (and shelter is available). Unless it's raining hard and blowing, their feathers do help repel the moisture. Think about your wild birds? How do you suppose they do in weather like this?

Iam using heat lamps in brooder at what age should I stop. I live in Wisconsin and winter is coming

I agree with Bear Foot here. You might want to rethink having young chicks in a cold climate late in the year.

 

[Chicks Galore3]

Quote: france4862 - I agree with Bear Foot and bobbi-j, but as you can't send the chicks back just because it is cold, I would use the heat lamp until they are fully feathered and slowly lower the temperature until they can be without it.

 

[bobbi-j]

france4862 - I agree with Bear Foot and bobbi-j, but as you can't send the chicks back just because it is cold, I would use the heat lamp until they are fully feathered and slowly lower the temperature until they can be without it.

True - I was thinking of in the future...

 

[Chicks Galore3]

Quote: I figured, it is good advice. Not trying to be mean or nothin.

 

[donrae]

I have another question. It doesn't involve heat lamps but it does involve heat. (or lack there of.) It is very drizzly rainy foggy yucky outside, and it's about 50 degrees. Should I let my chickens out? If (they will) get wet, would they be too cold? One time last year they got wet and it was cold so I blow-dried them, because I didn't know if they'd catch their deaths of colds.

I'm in the PNW and always allow my birds to choose to come and go as they please. Unless it's a real downpour, their actual skin doesn't get wet, those feathers just slick the water right off. 50 degrees is nothing for them, and they're really not getting wet. Let them choose when to come and go, they're really not going to die because of weather if they've got shelter available.

 

[france4862]

We plan to move fully feathered chicks from brooder to heated coup. They will be quit spoiled

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

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[wsmith]

My place is at nearly 6000 feet. In the winter it can get a little chilly, with temps in the negatives F and winds that exceed 60 MPH. The only time I have even closed the chicken door to the coop is when I know it will be below zero and the weather is nasty. Otherwise I leave the door open all the time, and they come and go as they please. While roosting on one of the coldest nights last winter I put my hand into the middle of the roosting pile. Very warm. I'm not worried about my chickens. I add heat for brooding chicks, but the heat lamp is gone when they are fully feathered. (even in April we have 50-60 F daytime temperature differences one day to the next.) I have an adjustable thermostat and as soon as the chicks start to feather, the temp is gradually reduced. I have a heater under the waterer that Is kept in the coop, but it doesn't put out enough heat to warm the coop, but keeps the water from freezing down to about zero. Below that the water freezes.

What I have noticed in my time on BYC, is that for many, chicken keeping is a cool thing to do, kind of a fad for some. Many forget that chickens were being kept on farms long (centuries) before they had electricity and the vast majority weren't heated at all. Chickens have some great instincts, and will know when to go out, when to come in and how to stay warm. They adapt easily without our intervention. Many people think of them as pets, and apply human emotions and feelings to their chickens. That's fine, but in the process, frequently people forget that they are domestic farm animals. My wife was very worried about ours when we first got them. She hadn't been raised around them as I had, and just knew that they would be too cold and all freeze to death. Now she doesn't even think about it, as she has seen that they do just fine, so long as we provide them good food, fresh water, and adequate shelter.

Just my 2 cents.