Howdy, I'm new here and have some questions!

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C Siena said:
I know the feeling but wait. If it's warm (where are you located?), you can take them outside on the dry grass/ground, in a cage, in a non windy area. Depending on your soil type, you may need to supply a little chick grit.

I will throw some chick crumbles on the ground and "peck" it with my finger. Then they run over to check it out and begin to peck the food.

I wait until they are about 5 wks old before giving treats other than crumbles in my hand or wet down (yes, it's a treat for them).

How old are your chicks?
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I'm in Kansas so it's 80s to high 90s here currently! I thought about taking them outside but being they're 9 days old I worried it was too risky with the lack of temperature control.
 
C Siena said:
Greetings & Salutations. Welcome sleepymssky.

Pleased you joined our community. A wonderful place to Learn and have Fun.

Enjoy your chicks, they will become more than 4, chicken math.

I wish I had a bigger coop to begin but of course, I was only going to have so many chickens. Well that first coop was full by the end of the first summer. Our second coop, built a year later is 8'x8'x9' and is already full. I'm going to need to expand the first coop or build another (shhh, don't tell my husband 😎 ). Oh and Plenty of ventilation.
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I luckily converted an old shed with lots of remodeling and could fit ~20 if I so choose 🤣 Chicken math feels very real already!
 
sleepymssky said:
I'm in Kansas so it's 80s to high 90s here currently! I thought about taking them outside but being they're 9 days old I worried it was too risky with the lack of temperature control.
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I've done it at that age when the temps were the same as their brooder, but only for an hour the first couple of times, then brought them right back in. We have an indoor/outdoor doggy pen with a removable bottom and a screen that can be zipped on top, so it works well for them.

It's also good as it gets them exposed to "germs" so they'll build up tolerances/resistances faster, to coccidiosis, for example.
 
sleepymssky said:
I'm in Kansas so it's 80s to high 90s here currently! I thought about taking them outside but being they're 9 days old I worried it was too risky with the lack of temperature control.
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I would think if it was a sunny 85-90 day, let them out in the sun for an hour. You can put something to shade a section and they can go to the shade if they are too warm. If they run around, explore, they're ok, if they huddle together, they are too cold. Just a short outing in the sun.

They are your therapy chicks. Wonderful that you have such enjoyment from them. Take the chicken math slow...for now. :)
 
C Siena said:
I would think if it was a sunny 85-90 day, let them out in the sun for an hour. You can put something to shade a section and they can go to the shade if they are too warm. If they run around, explore, they're ok, if they huddle together, they are too cold. Just a short outing in the sun.

They are your therapy chicks. Wonderful that you have such enjoyment from them. Take the chicken math slow...for now. :)
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I think I'll do that tomorrow while my kiddos play outside! It'll be so fun to watch them play too!
 
Hello, welcome to BYC. I'm hatching my first brood at the moment. Something to pass on is have your brooder set-up before the chicks hatch to ensure heat lights and temps are stable before your chicks go in. I set mine up a week before hatch day but in future I'd do this ten days before because we had a few early birds hatch on day 16. A tool I couldn't be without is a ceramic reptile heat bulb it emits lots of warm but no glowing l use a heat bulb during the day and switch to the ceramic at night. That way they get heat 24/7 and light for 14 hrs each day.

I too am disabled and like many things in life I have adapted my brooder for easier access. Good luck with your ducklings. I hope they bring you joy.
 

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