Help!

[chick007]

i am in anchorage, alaska and broodered my bunch with one 125 watt brooder lamp. they will be fine. you need to set the light in one place and try togeta consistant temp. then moniter your chicks. if they are huddiling under light then they are cold. if they are well outsde of 12 inch circle under lamp then they are too warm. if they are wandering about then its probably about right. try using an outdoor digital thermometer with outdoor lead on flooor of brooder about 8 inches outside of lght source, as it will give you the best reading of what chicks temp is. they will occasionally lay on thermometer lead and then you will get the chicks actuall body temp.

 

[fiddlebanshee]

Yea the little buggers are pretty hardy. Mine are now 2 weeks old and we had really cool temps here at night (high 40s). The temp in the brooder dropped to 74 during the night but they were all up and happy this morning. Maybe they were peeping just a little bit louder than usual so I lowered the lamp a bit more, since it's not going to warm up today much. At the moment they seem to be happiest between 80-85 degrees, which is 5 degrees cooler than what the textbook says, but I'm just going by behavior.

I've also read that slightly below is better than slightly too hot, and that they feather out more quickly when they're a little cooler.

 

[mstricer]

I must be insane, compared to everyone here. I actually have 3 week old FR outside and they have been for a week. They are in a 8 x 8 open grower pen covered with tarp and a 100 watt red bulb. They are happy running around eating and drinking and playing, and feathering out nicely. They sleep under the light but not huddled. Just head to butt sparlded out like they are dead or something. I think they are hardy then one thinks. A broody hen will take her babies out by day 3 no mater if it is raining, wet muddy cold. Mine had hers out at one week old in puddles forging and when it started to rain she spread her wings and everyone got under. As we all know chickens aren't the smartest, It was down pouring and she was less then 3 ft from coop but just stood there. I do believe they need a light with no hen.
Good Luck with your babies
Michele

 

[Judy]

Quote:
This is very true. If cool they can cuddle -- they shouldn't pile and smother the ones on the bottom unless it's way too cool. And cuddling to sleep doesn't mean they are necessarily cool; they like to do this anyway. But you can cook them just a few degrees above warm enough. Once they've adjusted to things, in a few days, you'll be able to tell by how they act as well as a thermometer. You should see them scattered around when awake, some closer to heat, some farther; they will have different preferences. I think a lot of people make the mistake of too small a brooder, and of not making sure they can move either closer to the heat, or farther from it, as they feel the need, which won't be the same for all of them. By 2 weeks they really need .5 sq ft each, and by 4 weeks a whole sq ft each. It would be a real good idea to check on them during the cold part of the night once or twice, but you shouldn't have to do much of this. And you should never have to move them in the house. The first week or two are the hardest on them; once they make it to 2 or 3 weeks, they still benefit from some warmth, but it won't need to be a lot.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
I must be insane, too, then. My broody raised chicks never have added heat, even in winter, and we do get below freezing here. Mine had hers out at 3 days in windy 45 degree days. They would run under her for a few minutes then go back out foraging. Last spring I had some 3 week olds in the coop, nighttime lows in the 60's, no mama hen, and at 3 weeks I turned the light off because they were avoiding it; they preferred cuddling next to each other in some hay, about 5' from the heat lamp, which I'd already raised to 3' or so. I really think once they get past that first several days, they are hardier than we think.

 

[tritty74]

I totally agree.

 

[jmtcmkb]

I am using an ecoglow, so there is only radiant heat directly under it- the room temp has 68* from day 1 they have spent nearly all day playing eating drinking, they run under the ecoglow for a bit and run back out- I dont think they need a constant 80* just a place to go warm up as needed.

I plan on moving them to a spare room next week and make sure that room slowly gets cooler and cooler to prepare them to move out in the coop when feathered. I will shut off heat vents to the room and open the window slightly to chill- they will always have the ecoglow to huddle under to get warm as needed.