How much space do my chicks need?

[Strategic Chicken]

Hi. I'm new to chicks. We just got three week-old chicks yesterday. We put them in a cardboard box brooder the is about 3 by 3 feet. Is that enough space for them, as they look kind of cramped, or am I stressing too much? Thank you.

 

[nuthatched]

3 in 3x3 box sounds fine, but they'll double on size every week so it won't last for long, have a bigger box ready for next week.

 

[3KillerBs]

The guidelines for chicks vary more from source to source than the guidelines for adults, but the one I've seen most often is:

1/2 square foot for the first week or two.
1 square foot for the next 2-3 weeks.
2 square feet for the next 4-6 weeks.
After 10-12 weeks the full 4 square feet per bird like an adult.

3x3 is 9 square feet and so should last your chicks well past their need for brooding -- though if you CAN give them more it's better.

My brooder is 4x8 and even a half-dozen chicks will use the entire 32 square feet.

Also, the feed and water stations take up space in the brooder so you can't count those square feet.

I brood outdoors and like to get my chicks off heat and into the main coop as soon as possible, usually integrating at about 4 weeks.