FathertoFeathers
Songster
I am currently raising 10 jersey giant chicks who are about three weeks old. Today when I got home from school the brooder smelled bad! How do I keep the brooder smelling good?
How can I keep my brooder from reeking
- Thread starter FathertoFeathers
- Start date
The straw and paper is your problem. They retain moisture and start to mold/rot. Change to pine shavings.
Do you have electricity to your coop? If so, I'd suggest moving them out there with the heat if you can. I have brooded chicks in MN in late March to early April in the coop. The last time I raised chicks, I used the Mama Heating Pad method. Early April, night time temps in the low 20's, and they were the healthiest chicks I have raised. Much happier than with the heat lamp, and weaned off heat much sooner than heat lamp chicks.
Please be careful with the blanket over that lamp. Actually, I'd feel better if you would remove it. That is a fire hazard, and as someone who has been through a house fire, I'm a bit twitchy about things like that.
Please be careful with the blanket over that lamp. Actually, I'd feel better if you would remove it. That is a fire hazard, and as someone who has been through a house fire, I'm a bit twitchy about things like that.
- Thread starter
- #31
FathertoFeathers
Songster
I apologize if I was doing this wrong. I was going off of things that I read on this website and others. I was told I shouldn’t put the chicks outside if they were under 6 weeks old and to decrease the heat by five degrees every week. I wasn’t trying to be a bad chick owner I was only trying to do what I thought you were supposed to.
No reason to apologize. I’m impressed that you have done research. There are as many ways to raise chickens as there are people raising them. Not everything that works for me in Minnesota will work for you in Tennessee, but some things can work for both.
In my opinion, the “rules” for heat and space are more like guidelines. The best way to know what’s optimal for your birds is to watch them. In regards to temperature, watch to see where they are in the brooder. Huddled under the heat lamp? They’re cold. Scattered to the edges? Too hot. Dispersed throughout the brooder? Probably OK.
If they’re crowded, you may see some behaviors as feather picking, fighting and even cannibalism.
At 3 weeks old, they are likely going to start jumping out of that box soon.
When I brood chicks, I like to give them plenty of space so they can decide if they need to be in heat or out of it. If you’ve ever had a chance to observe baby chicks with a hen, you’ll see that they aren’t under her all the time. They run around, eat, drink and explore, then go back under her to warm for a bit before running around again.
Good luck with your chicks. It’s a fun hobby! (And please keep reaching out. As you can see, there are a lot of people who like to share their opinions and experiences.)
In my opinion, the “rules” for heat and space are more like guidelines. The best way to know what’s optimal for your birds is to watch them. In regards to temperature, watch to see where they are in the brooder. Huddled under the heat lamp? They’re cold. Scattered to the edges? Too hot. Dispersed throughout the brooder? Probably OK.
If they’re crowded, you may see some behaviors as feather picking, fighting and even cannibalism.
At 3 weeks old, they are likely going to start jumping out of that box soon.
When I brood chicks, I like to give them plenty of space so they can decide if they need to be in heat or out of it. If you’ve ever had a chance to observe baby chicks with a hen, you’ll see that they aren’t under her all the time. They run around, eat, drink and explore, then go back under her to warm for a bit before running around again.
Good luck with your chicks. It’s a fun hobby! (And please keep reaching out. As you can see, there are a lot of people who like to share their opinions and experiences.)
Lots of stuff out there are older techniques...
...we've learned a lot in the years gone by.
Here's my notes on chick heat, hope something in there might help:
They need to be pretty warm(~85-90F on the brooder floor right under the lamp and 10-20 degrees cooler at the other end of brooder) for the first day or two, especially if they have been shipped, until they get to eating, drinking and moving around well. But after that it's best to keep them as cool as possible for optimal feather growth and quicker acclimation to outside temps. A lot of chick illnesses are attributed to too warm of a brooder. I do think it's a good idea to use a thermometer on the floor of the brooder to check the temps, especially when new at brooding, later I still use it but more out of curiosity than need.
The best indicator of heat levels is to watch their behavior:
-If they are huddled/piled up right under the lamp and cheeping very loudly, they are too cold.
-If they are spread out on the absolute edges of the brooder as far from the lamp as possible, panting and/or cheeping very loudly, they are too hot.
-If they sleep around the edge of the lamp calmly just next to each other and spend time running all around the brooder they are juuuust right!
The lamp is best at one end of the brooder with food/water at the other cooler end of the brooder, so they can get away from the heat or be under it as needed. Wattage of 'heat' bulb depends on size of brooder and ambient temperature of room brooder is in. Regular incandescent bulbs can be used, you might not need a 'heat bulb'. If you do use a heat bulb make sure it's specifically for poultry, some heat bulbs for food have teflon coatings that can kill birds. You can get red colored incandescent bulbs at a reptile supply source. A dimmer extension cord is an excellent way to adjust the output of the bulb to change the heat without changing the height of the lamp.
Or you could go with a heat plate, commercially made or DIY: http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/pseudo-brooder-heater-plate
...we've learned a lot in the years gone by.
Here's my notes on chick heat, hope something in there might help:
They need to be pretty warm(~85-90F on the brooder floor right under the lamp and 10-20 degrees cooler at the other end of brooder) for the first day or two, especially if they have been shipped, until they get to eating, drinking and moving around well. But after that it's best to keep them as cool as possible for optimal feather growth and quicker acclimation to outside temps. A lot of chick illnesses are attributed to too warm of a brooder. I do think it's a good idea to use a thermometer on the floor of the brooder to check the temps, especially when new at brooding, later I still use it but more out of curiosity than need.
The best indicator of heat levels is to watch their behavior:
-If they are huddled/piled up right under the lamp and cheeping very loudly, they are too cold.
-If they are spread out on the absolute edges of the brooder as far from the lamp as possible, panting and/or cheeping very loudly, they are too hot.
-If they sleep around the edge of the lamp calmly just next to each other and spend time running all around the brooder they are juuuust right!
The lamp is best at one end of the brooder with food/water at the other cooler end of the brooder, so they can get away from the heat or be under it as needed. Wattage of 'heat' bulb depends on size of brooder and ambient temperature of room brooder is in. Regular incandescent bulbs can be used, you might not need a 'heat bulb'. If you do use a heat bulb make sure it's specifically for poultry, some heat bulbs for food have teflon coatings that can kill birds. You can get red colored incandescent bulbs at a reptile supply source. A dimmer extension cord is an excellent way to adjust the output of the bulb to change the heat without changing the height of the lamp.
Or you could go with a heat plate, commercially made or DIY: http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/pseudo-brooder-heater-plate
Feathered_Texans
Songster
Be very careful with a blanket over a heat lamp. I would suggest taking it off. There was a thread on here the other day where a heat lamp caused the death of 55 chickens and burnt 3 coops and the side of her house. Heat lamps can be very dangerous and you don’t want anything touching them. I know you want what is best, and I would hate if anything happened especially since it is in your house.
- Thread starter
- #29
FathertoFeathers
Songster
I have removed the blanket.
CindyinSD
All will be well, and that will be well is well.
If it smells bad it’s time to put them into a bigger brooder. Birds grow SO fast. I like to use deep litter for them, but it doesn’t matter how deep the litter is if the brooder has become too small.
Pictures will help people advise you. For your numbers and their age, I suspect the largest available plastic tote (preferably clear) would be appropriate at this point. I cut a large window out of the lid and affix 1/2” hardware cloth in its place with washers and short screws. If you don’t plan to brood chicks often, you could get away with something makeshift. Just be SUPER careful of fire if you’re using a heat lamp. You need to cover it because they’ll soon be hopping out if you don’t. Also it keeps the warmth in. I lay some smaller tote lids over the wire loosely at night for warmth. (I use infrared brooder heaters or homemade heating pad brooder “caves”.)
Search brooding chicks outside for ideas about what you can do when they outgrow the tote. It won’t be long.
Pictures will help people advise you. For your numbers and their age, I suspect the largest available plastic tote (preferably clear) would be appropriate at this point. I cut a large window out of the lid and affix 1/2” hardware cloth in its place with washers and short screws. If you don’t plan to brood chicks often, you could get away with something makeshift. Just be SUPER careful of fire if you’re using a heat lamp. You need to cover it because they’ll soon be hopping out if you don’t. Also it keeps the warmth in. I lay some smaller tote lids over the wire loosely at night for warmth. (I use infrared brooder heaters or homemade heating pad brooder “caves”.)
Search brooding chicks outside for ideas about what you can do when they outgrow the tote. It won’t be long.
What are you using for bedding and how often do you clean it?
Pics would be most helpful.
Pics would be most helpful.
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