Here they are! My first flock!

[Chick-N-Fun]

What an adorable flock! Have a FUNOMENAL time with those fluff babies!!!!!!

 

[BrandonVercnocke]

They need 95 degrees for the first week, 90 the second week, 85 the 3rd and so on. You are dropping the heat down by 5 degrees per week until you get to ambient outside temp. Are you raising them outside or in the house?
Depending on your location you may not have to use the light more than a couple weeks. It may even be overly warm outside to them. It gets really hot here a lot earlier than in most parts of the country. As long as they have plenty of room to spread out and cool off, a little higher temp won’t hurt them but they may take longer to “feather out”.
If they look like they are too hot in a couple weeks (panting, etc.), you can even add a bottle of frozen water in the brooder to cool them off.
Hope this made sense.

I’m raising them in the house in a spare bed room. I have a 250 watt bulb which I now know is a bit too much. They are in a four moving box taped together night mare that is a little too big for them right now but they will grow into it. It’s giving me some time to build the enclosed portion of my eventual coop. I’m building a three piece coop and this first portion will eventually go on top of a separate screened portion atop a separate bottom portion. The enclosed eventual roosting/nesting box area is initially going to used as the intermediate brooder when they outgrow the cardboard prison.

 

[Alex's chicks]

This might be a dumb question but....

What temperature does it need to be outside for me to turn the light off?

My brooder is pretty warm right now. 100 on the hot side and 85 on the cool side. It’s supposed to be hot for the next few days. High of low 90s tomorrow and almost 100 on Tuesday. Can I just leave the light off while I’m at work and back on at night? It will still be a little chilly when I leave in the morning but the room they are in is warm from the light.

Hope your chicks are doing great. If your chicks are inside and the room they are in stays warm from sunlight they should be fine without the artificial light. If you have a/c you can turn it off or up to help maintain desired temp. I live in southern az where the day temp is upper 90's to 100 and night temps in upper 70's. My chicks are almost 2 wks old. Their brooder is outside on a covered patio. I turn their heat lamp on before bed and turn off before I leave for work and they do fine. Just keep an eye on them and make any adjustments. I have been raising chicks like this for years from the first day I bring them home from the feed store and they do fine and I feel like the fresh air and exposure to other outside sights and sounds while in a protected brooder helps them to socialize better. That is just my opinion. Good luck !

 

[BrandonVercnocke]

Current setup

 

[Alex's chicks]

Current setup

Looks good. They look content.

 

[WickedChicksNH]

awww love em..
i just hatched a light Brahma myself.

 

[BrandonVercnocke]

I’m suspicious of the sex of my Easter Egger.
Any thoughts?

 

[BrandonVercnocke]

Here are some videos of the comb

 

[Flockandfowl46]

Congrats! Hope you enjoy your new fuzzy butts!

 

[BrandonVercnocke]

I lost a chick last night. I had a blr Wyandotte that was significantly younger and smaller than the rest of the flock. Woke up this morning and it pass away sometime during the night. I cried pretty hard. I’m thinking it was a failed to thrive issue.