How to build perches for baby chicks?

[K0k0shka]

The temperatures for the next week will be ranging from around 75-90 degrees. The night temps are supposed to be between 59-64 degrees. Should I put the chicks in the coop with a heat lamp and just turn the lamp on at night?

Do you have other chickens in the coop right now? If yes, don't add a heat lamp. The other chickens will be too hot. What's the temperature like in the coop at night? Depending on your coop size, design and placement, it won't necessarily reach the ambient outdoor temperature at night, or if it does it may take it hours to cool down to 60 from 90. Coops can heat up and hold heat. So the inside of the coop may actually stay warm enough at night, and not need extra heat for the chicks. Get a thermometer in there and measure what the temperature is at night, and if it even gets as cold as the outside temperature.

I had heard that the calcium in layer feed was too high for chicks and protein, too low. What would I do with their feed if I put the chicks in the coop now?

That's why flock raiser is the best. It doesn't contain added calcium, and works for all ages of chickens. It's 20% protein which is good for both growing chicks, and laying hens. Have those chicks had medicated starter yet? If that's what they've been eating so far, and they're 3 weeks old, then they don't need it anymore and you can put the whole flock on flock raiser, with calcium on the side. If they haven't had any medicated feed, you can put the whole flock on medicated starter for a few weeks (or until they finish the bag), then switch everybody to flock raiser. That way you avoid the potential issues of chicks eating too much calcium.

 

[ohnoicantfly]

At 3-1/2 weeks old they will probably be OK at those temperatures but if you can put that lamp in there safely so they have the option it won't hurt anything. Do not use that clamp that came with the light. Instead attach the lamp with chain or wire so it cannot fall. That removes most of the risk of having that lamp out there.


Do you have older chickens out there? If you do you have integration to consider. That complicates it.

Studies have shown that growing chicks that eat nothing but Layer can have problems with the calcium, so it is a good idea to avoid it. You can get different opinions on how much protein they actually need at that age and beyond. The way many of us handle feeding chicks and laying hens at the same time is to offer them all the same low calcium feed and offer oyster shells on the side. That way the ones that need the calcium for egg shells can eat it and do. The others don't eat enough to harm themselves.

Ok. So aim for 75-80 degrees under the heat lamp?

I have 6 hens in the coop currently. All are about 2-3 years old.

So if I give the chicks and the hens layer feed and offer extra calcium, it would be okay if I put them all together? It makes me sort of sad to see the chicks so eager to escape the brooder.

 

[Ridgerunner]

@K0k0shka I need to rewrite this because I don't do it exactly this way anymore, but the basics still hold. Feeding them medicated feed does not give them immunity. It allows them to develop immunity if they are exposed to the bug that causes Cocci. If they are not exposed to that bug it doesn't do anything. That is covered in here.

First you need to know what the "medicated" is in the medicated feed. It should be on the label. Usually it is Amprolium, Amprol, some such product, but until you read the label, you really don't know. Most "medicated' feed from major brands for chicks that will be layers uses Amprolium, but there are a few out there mostly for broilers, that use other medicines. I'll assume yours is an Amprolium product, but if it is not, then realize everything I say about it may not apply. And it is possible that the "medicated" is Amprolium AND something else.

Amprolium is not an antibiotic. It does not kill anything. It inhibits the protozoa that cause coccidiosis (often called Cocci on this forum) from multiplying in the chicken's system. It does not prevent the protozoa from multiplying; it just slows that multiplication down. There are several different strains of protozoa that can cause Cocci, some more severe than others. Chickens can develop immunity to a specific strain of the protozoa, but that does not give them immunity to all protozoa that cause Cocci.

It is not a big deal for the chicken’s intestines to contain some of the protozoa that cause Cocci. The problem comes in when the number of those protozoa gets huge. The protozoa can multiply in the chicken’s intestines but also in wet manure. For them to reproduce they need some moisture. Slightly damp isn't an issue, soaking wet is. Different protozoa strains have different strengths, but for almost all cases, if you keep the brooder dry, you will not have a problem.

To develop immunity to a specific strain, that protozoa needs to be in the chicks intestines for two or three weeks. The normal sequence is that a chick has the protozoa. It poops and some of the cysts that develop the protozoa come out in the poop. If the poop is slightly damp, those cysts develop and will then develop in the chick's intestines when the chicks eat that poop. This cycle needs go on for a few weeks so all chicks are exposed and they are exposed long enough to develop immunity. A couple of important points here. You do need to watch them to see if they are getting sick. And the key is to keep the brooder dry yet allow some of the poop to stay damp. Not soaking wet, just barely damp. Wet poop can lead to serious problems.

What sometimes happens is that people keep chicks in a brooder and feed them medicated feed while they are in the brooder. Those chicks are never exposed to the Cocci protozoa that lives in the dirt in their run, so they never develop the immunity to it. Then, they are switched to non-medicated feed and put on the ground where they are for the first time exposed to the protozoa. They do not have immunity, they do not have the protection of the medicated feed, so they get sick. Feeding medicated feed while in the brooder was a complete waste.

I do not feed medicated feed. I keep the brooder dry to not allow the protozoa to breed uncontrollably. The third day that they are in the brooder, I take a scoop of dirt from the run and feed it to them so I can introduce the protozoa and they can develop the immunity they need to the strain they need to develop an immunity to. Since I keep my brooder extremely dry and the water clean the protozoa can't reproduce so every three days I give them more dirt from the run so they get more protozoa and can develop immunity. I don't lose chicks to Cocci when they hit the ground.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding medicated feed to chicks, whether the protozoa are present or not. It will not hurt them. They can still develop the immunity they need. But unless the protozoa are present, it also does no good.

If you get your chicks vaccinated for Cocci, do not feed medicated feed. It can negate the vaccinations.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Ok. So aim for 75-80 degrees under the heat lamp?

I don't aim for any specific temperature. I want it warm enough which 75 to 80 Fahrenheit would be. But if it is 95 to 100 F that's OK too as long as they can get away from it. My goal is to have a spot warm enough in the coldest conditions and a spot cool enough in the warmest conditions. That way they can choose where they want to be, whether that is in one of those spots or somewhere in between.

So if I give the chicks and the hens layer feed and offer extra calcium, it would be okay if I put them all together? It makes me sort of sad to see the chicks so eager to escape the brooder.

No. Do not give Layer feed at all, it has too much calcium in it for the chicks. Give a low calcium feed to all of them with the extra calcium on the side so they can choose whether to eat it or not.

 

[ohnoicantfly]

Do you have other chickens in the coop right now? If yes, don't add a heat lamp. The other chickens will be too hot. What's the temperature like in the coop at night? Depending on your coop size, design and placement, it won't necessarily reach the ambient outdoor temperature at night, or if it does it may take it hours to cool down to 60 from 90. Coops can heat up and hold heat. So the inside of the coop may actually stay warm enough at night, and not need extra heat for the chicks. Get a thermometer in there and measure what the temperature is at night, and if it even gets as cold as the outside temperature.


That's why flock raiser is the best. It doesn't contain added calcium, and works for all ages of chickens. It's 20% protein which is good for both growing chicks, and laying hens. Have those chicks had medicated starter yet? If that's what they've been eating so far, and they're 3 weeks old, then they don't need it anymore and you can put the whole flock on flock raiser, with calcium on the side. If they haven't had any medicated feed, you can put the whole flock on medicated starter for a few weeks (or until they finish the bag), then switch everybody to flock raiser. That way you avoid the potential issues of chicks eating too much calcium.

Yes, I have 6 hens in there.
The coop is 12x9'. I would guess the ceilings are about 8-9 feet as well. The coop is also insulated. I think it retains some heat when I lock up the chickens at night. There's a window in there that I leave a crack open so that probably doesn't help with retaining heat. I'll put a thermometer in there though.
I don't know if they have had medicated starter at all, as I bought them from someone else.

 

[K0k0shka]

Looks like putting the whole flock on medicated starter while the chicks build immunity is the best way to go. Then when they finish the bag, put the whole flock on flock raiser feed. No layer feed at any point. Extra calcium in a separate container (crushed eggshell or oyster shell) at all times, for the layers.

And I would not add a heat lamp to the coop at all since you have older chickens in there already. Chickens get hot easily, and don't tolerate heat as well as cold. 80-90-100 F is too hot for the older chickens, and it won't stay that hot only immediately around the lamp, it will radiate out and heat the whole coop, and the heat will stay in, with nowhere for the older chickens to escape to and cool off. Daytime temperatures are already high enough, they need the night to cool down. It would be much better to add a heat plate instead - you can even make one very easily out of a heated pad. I've done that before - make a little "table" out of a board on legs, about the height of the chicks or a little lower, and strap the heated pad on the underside, so they can crawl under there to warm up at night. I got my heated pad on Amazon. Just make sure it doesn't have an auto shut off feature. I don't think they needed/used it past week 4 though, and that was in May in Massachusetts, so whatever you use it will probably just be for about a week.

 

[Ridgerunner]

And I would not add a heat lamp to the coop at all since you have older chickens in there already. Chickens get hot easily, and don't tolerate heat as well as cold. 80-90-100 F is too hot for the older chickens, and it won't stay that hot only immediately around the lamp, it will radiate out and heat the whole coop, and the heat will stay in, with nowhere for the older chickens to escape to and cool off.

Have you ever used a heat lamp, especially in a 9' x 12' coop? I have in an 8x12. In those temperatures and if the coop is well ventilated it will not raise the temperatures enough even a few feet away to be any kind of a problem. If you have no ventilation or a tiny brooder, it can get too hot. My brooder in the coop is 3' x 6' and well ventilated up high. In winter the far end of that brooder might have ice in it while the immediate area around the lamp is toasty. In warmer weather I use a smaller wattage bulb if I need any heat at all. If I need heat it will not overheat anything. If I don't need heat the light is off.

 

[K0k0shka]

Have you ever used a heat lamp, especially in a 9' x 12' coop? I have in an 8x12. In those temperatures and if the coop is well ventilated it will not raise the temperatures enough even a few feet away to be any kind of a problem. If you have no ventilation or a tiny brooder, it can get too hot. My brooder in the coop is 3' x 6' and well ventilated up high. In winter the far end of that brooder might have ice in it while the immediate area around the lamp is toasty. In warmer weather I use a smaller wattage bulb if I need any heat at all. If I need heat it will not overheat anything. If I don't need heat the light is off.

I don't know what OP's ventilation is like, but this sentence had me questioning the ventilation situation, hence my caution:

There's a window in there that I leave a crack open

One window a crack open in the middle of summer is concerning. All windows should be wide open this time of year, and more, even in Canada...

@ohnoicantfly what do you have in terms of ventilation? Why only a crack open for the window?

 

[ohnoicantfly]

One window a crack open in the middle of summer is concerning. All windows should be wide open this time of year, and more, even in Canada...

@ohnoicantfly what do you have in terms of ventilation? Why only a crack open for the window?

I leave the window completely open during the day. And there's also a door that stays wide open for just as long.
I do have a ventilation system in the coop, but it makes a very loud whirring noise when I plug it in and this concerned me so I never used it.
I only leave the window a crack open at night because of predators and such. Might not do much to protect them, but it's something.
Sorry for not being more clear.

 

[K0k0shka]

I leave the window completely open during the day. And there's also a door that stays wide open for just as long.
I do have a ventilation system in the coop, but it makes a very loud whirring noise when I plug it in and this concerned me so I never used it.
I only leave the window a crack open at night because of predators and such. Might not do much to protect them, but it's something.
Sorry for not being more clear.

Does your window not have any hardware cloth on it? If it does, you can leave it open at night too, to help the coop air out and cool down in summer nights. And if it doesn’t, then that’s a huge oversight and you need to predator proof it so you can leave it open.