in the brooder for how long?

[carolinasculpture]

Hi! On my first batch of chicks. They are in the living room in a rabbit hutch (?). It is like a large dog crate, but not quite as sturdy and has a tray over the wire instead of under the wire. Anyway, how long should I keep them inside. They are currently going outside for about 4 hours a day depending on the weather. How much space do they need at this age. There are 7, 3 are 3 weeks old and 4 are 2 weeks old. Also, I have put newspaper on the bottom and then cover it with clover I cut from the lawn. Is this OK? Haven't seen it mentioned anywhere. Thanks to all of you who have done this before and keep giving us advise!

 

[mamaKate]

Congratulations an your new babies. I hope you're having fun. They can go outside anytime as long as they have constant access to a warm space. For the 2 week olds, that would be about 80 degrees. Do be sure they are dry and predator proof. As for the clover, it's probably ok as long as they have grit with it and it hasn't been treated with any lawn chemicals. They will eat some of it. I'm thinking the space should be about 7 sq. ft. Within a few weeks that will jump to 84- 28 coop and 56 run.