Hot garage or air conditioned house? I live in the desert....

[PiTownPeep]

I am a newbie here and I am about to order a new flock, the brooder box is ready and so is the coop once they are big girls! I've kept chicken before (easter eggers) when I lived in Colorado several years back. Now I live in the high desert in California where we have daytime temps in 90's - 100's and the evenings can get into the 60's. If I set up my brooder box in the garage I won't need any heat in the daytime as the garage is around 80 - 98 on it's own. There's good ventilation (a large screened window) however I don't want them to be too hot! And as it progresses into evening they would need a heat lamp.

I guess my question is how constant does the temperature need to be for the first few weeks? If it fluctuates between 80 and 98 (up and down, depending on the weather outside) is that too much of a difference? My other option would be to haul the brooder into the air conditioned house and use the heat lamp constantly, monitoring it for 95 degrees then decreasing by 5 degrees each week. The brooder is 2' 4' x 2' high, made of plywood and 2x4s so it's pretty big to move around. I also have 4 cats inside. I can cover the brooder with hardware cloth to protect the chicks but I remember it didn't take long before they are fairly stinky even with daily litter/shaving changes.

So - better for the chicks to have them in a garage with temperature variances or should I really bring them inside?

And - I am still trying to decide on what breed(s) -- while I have your attention -- how would the following get along together? I want a variety (total of 16 birds) and was considering a few of each of the following: Dominique, Welsummer, Salmon Favorelle, Golden Campine, Araucana and Columbian Wyandotte so the egg colors would be varied. I've read a bit about each breed and didn't see any indication that they would be unduly aggressive -- but I'd rather hear from the voices of experience here! If one of these breeds is known for bullying the others I'd rather not invite trouble into the coop

Thanks so much!

 

[Michael OShay]

Having previously lived for seven years in the northern Sacramento valley in California, i would advise you to bring them in the house and use a heat lamp. As for your breeds, they are all reasonably friendly and should do okay if raised together although Campines and Dominiques can be flighty and occasionally I have had an aggressive Wyandotte (an exception not a rule). I've also had Easter Eggers (which is what most birds sold as Auraucanas and Ameraucanas actually are) and Welsummers and never had any major behavioral problems with either of them.

 

[debid]

I brood outdoors. Chicks generate a huge amount of dust and they smell like chickens. I would not keep them in my house.

Is your coop predator secure? You can start chicks in their adult home as long as it is a suitable environment. And no, they won't be harmed by swings in temperature. Space to escape the supplemental heat will allow them to self-regulate and they will go where it is comfortable. I'd be careful not to use too much wattage (an ecoglow would be ideal!) so you don't overheat the space. They won't need much.

Garages are worrisome because fumes from exhaust are hazardous -- unless you use it for storage rather than parking, I wouldn't. And again, the dust will be everywhere.

BTW, I'd consider the lighter bodied, larger combed breeds since you live in a hot environment. Leghorns, for example, can take much more heat than fat, fluffy Wyandottes.

 

[Michael OShay]

Having previously lived for seven years in the northern Sacramento valley in California, i would advise you to bring them in the house and use a heat lamp. As for your breeds, they are all reasonably friendly and should do okay if raised together although Campines and Dominiques can be flighty and occasionally I have had an aggressive Wyandotte (an exception not a rule). I've also had Easter Eggers (which is what most birds sold as Auraucanas and Ameraucanas actually are) and Welsummers and never had any major behavioral problems with either of them.

I brood outdoors. Chicks generate a huge amount of dust and they smell like chickens. I would not keep them in my house.

Is your coop predator secure? You can start chicks in their adult home as long as it is a suitable environment. And no, they won't be harmed by swings in temperature. Space to escape the supplemental heat will allow them to self-regulate and they will go where it is comfortable. I'd be careful not to use too much wattage (an ecoglow would be ideal!) so you don't overheat the space. They won't need much.

Garages are worrisome because fumes from exhaust are hazardous -- unless you use it for storage rather than parking, I wouldn't. And again, the dust will be everywhere.

BTW, I'd consider the lighter bodied, larger combed breeds since you live in a hot environment. Leghorns, for example, can take much more heat than fat, fluffy Wyandottes.

If I understand correctly, you would like more docile breeds (correct me if I'm wrong). Leghorns are not a docile breed. I had Black Australorps, Buff Orpingtons, and Black Sex Links (all heavier bodied breeds) and they all did fine in the summer California heat. Just make sure you have a shaded area for them.

 

[PiTownPeep]

Thanks for the info everyone! I do want more docile/approachable breeds, so once I am set up to allow free ranging I won't be retrieving chickens from treetops too often. Here's a pic of the inside of the coop (it's an old tack room). The area enclosed for the chickens is 10' x 8', and there's a sliding window that I've put hardware cloth over. I am considering adding a simple rooftop turbine and lining the underside of the roof with rigid foam or the metallic bubble wrap stuff to provide a cooler coop. Suggestions on this most welcome! Again, we go from 100+ in the summer to light snow in the winter.

Also attached a pic of an odd picture I found at a thrift store, I am curious what it is all about! I finally have a place to hang it in the storage area of the coop.

The last picture is the coop from the outside, gotta figure out the free ranging/predator proofing or chicken tractor aspect. I am also in the process of adopting two llamas so everything outside is sort of in the planning stages at this point.

 

[debid]

Yikes. It's cute as heck but zero shade and a dark color plus four uninsulated walls says "oven" to me. I'd have a minimal enclosure, myself, if I lived there. Basically, a wind break and a roof plus lots of hardware cloth to keep out the critters. Those are common in hotter places and I'm sure you can find pictures on BYC. It doesn't get as hot as often here but I put two big windows opposite each other that are open all the time except in winter, positioned the coop in full shade of deciduous trees, and I run a fan to create a breeze for them on days approaching or over 100. I've only lost one to heat and it was a Speckled Sussex on a rare 108F day. Heat is hard on chickens and I stand by my statement that it's harder on heavies than light-bodied breeds.

 

[Michael OShay]

Yikes. It's cute as heck but zero shade and a dark color plus four uninsulated walls says "oven" to me. I'd have a minimal enclosure, myself, if I lived there. Basically, a wind break and a roof plus lots of hardware cloth to keep out the critters. Those are common in hotter places and I'm sure you can find pictures on BYC. It doesn't get as hot as often here but I put two big windows opposite each other that are open all the time except in winter, positioned the coop in full shade of deciduous trees, and I run a fan to create a breeze for them on days approaching or over 100. I've only lost one to heat and it was a Speckled Sussex on a rare 108F day. Heat is hard on chickens and I stand by my statement that it's harder on heavies than light-bodied breeds.

I agree with debid regarding the apparent lack of shade. You should at least paint the exterior of the structure white to reflect heat away from the coop. If you still want a docile breed, Black Australorps, which are very heat tolerant (consider the temps. in the Australian outback where many of them are raised), would be as good a breed as any. I had them in the northern Sacramento valley where temps frequently reached 117-118 F (123 F once) and they handled the heat well.

 

[PiTownPeep]

Thanks! Can't paint the exterior due to the town I live in...but I can install rigid insulation and a turbine. When I am in the coop it's actually cooler in there than outside, and I've put a thermometer in there to keep an eye on temp fluctuation. My new babies won't move in for two more months (they aren't even a gleam in the roosters eye yet!) so it will give me ample time to make sure it's a suitable environment for them. Even though I know it will not be great for us, I am going to have the brooder box inside the house for the first month where I can monitor the temperature instead of leaving them in the garage and worrying it's too hot or too cold. I will add Australorps to the list and remove the breeds that are iffy. It's difficult because it's not just heat tolerant, they have to be somewhat cold tolerant as well since it snows here. I really appreciate the advice

 

[Michael OShay]

Australorps should work well for you as they are very cold tolerant as well. They are just good, tough, hardy birds that lay lots of nice brown eggs.

 

[capt toad]

Australorps should work well for you as they are very cold tolerant as well.  They are just good, tough, hardy birds that lay lots of nice brown eggs.

I've got a baker's dozen of the lil' rascals and concur, wholeheartedly!