Hello from Armstrong, British Columbia, Canada!

[Heywood587]

Hello all,
Just a quick introduction here.
My wife Bev and I are expecting a mix of 25 Heritage Breed chicks (Ameraucanas, Buff Orpingtons, Black Australorps and Speckled Sussex) to arrive at our farm this Friday!
We have never raised chickens before so I will be spending a lot of time here a on BYC!
We have in the past raised wild eastern Turkey from day old poults, so we do have some experience.
Any way just wanted to say hello from the sunny Okanagan!
Looking forward to interacting as well as gleaning an abundance of useful information from you all!
Best Regards,
Steve and Bev.
Hullcar Mountain Farm.

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi Steve and Bev and welcome to BYC. Good luck with your new flock

 

[Meg-in-MT]

Hello! Welcome to BYC!! Do you have their coop and run all set up? Congratulations on establishing your flock!

 

[Isaac 0]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[Heywood587]

Hello! Welcome to BYC!! Do you have their coop and run all set up? Congratulations on establishing your flock!

Hi Meg in MT!
We still have a foot or two of snow up here on the mountain side. Soon as the snow melts I will be setting up the coop and run for the birds.
I did build a new brooder for the little ones however! I’m hoping they won’t outgrow it before I get the run and coop up!

 

[Meg-in-MT]

You did a nice job on the brooder! If you don't have one, I suggest putting a thermometer in there on the floor or chick level, so you can keep an eye on it. How big is it? And, of course, make sure those heat lamps are securely fastened. You may find you only need one of them.

Sorry to hear about the snow! I usually know the feeling, but we don't have much of any this year.

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Welcome to our FUNomenal community!
Best wishes and have lots of fun!
Nice looking Brooder!

 

[Heywood587]

You did a nice job on the brooder! If you don't have one, I suggest putting a thermometer in there on the floor or chick level, so you can keep an eye on it. How big is it? And, of course, make sure those heat lamps are securely fastened. You may find you only need one of them.

Sorry to hear about the snow! I usually know the feeling, but we don't have much of any this year.

Thanks Meg!
I am down to one heat lamp in the brooder now as 2 was overkill.
the brooder itself is 3’x5’. Okay I guess for the first 3 or 4 weeks of growth. I did put together a quick 4’x4’x20” tall backup brooder just in case the chicks get over crowded in the main brooder. I will install a hardware cloth lid on it as well.
I am actually planning to put a dimmer switch on the175watt heat lamp in the main brooder as I cannot raise the lamp any higher. Im at 105 degF directly under the lamp...is that good enough or is it a little too warm?
Thanks Meg.

 

[sourland]

Hello, Steve and Bev, and welcome to BYC. Good luck with your flock.

 

[DobieLover]

Hello, Steve and Bev, and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.
Your brooder is a good start for that many chicks. They are going to outgrow it in about 2 to 3 weeks.
Splitting up the flock is not a good idea. They should be moved to a larger brooder or expand the one you have. I'd target getting them moved into the coop at 6 weeks old.