Is it too late in the year to start raising some chics considering it will be in or around January when they will need to go outside? I am worried they won't be ready for the cold. I will have their coop ready by then, but I still worry. I look forward to your answers and suggestions! Thanx!
I wouldn't but some folks will. It depends on how much work you want to do, how cold it is in your area and what breed of chickens. Also depends on why you want chickens--hobby or for profit. I only want chickens for a backyard hobby and prefer to wait for the warmer weather.
I would say go for it... if you wait til spring, it will be july before you see any eggs. chickens can take the cold so long as they are a breed without huge combs and so long as they are feathered out.
How cold? Where are you? It would be ideal to raise/brood them outdoors and get them acclimated as they grew. Brooding them in a house then putting them out in a real winter might indeed be a bit much.
If you have a coop/barn or other housing that you CAN insulate against the cold in at least a part of it you probably can get away with it. Last fall I used my portable building (it is the nursery for my chicks and mamas) and insulated a part of it. I did heat it with a approved heater and the chicks made it fine. It did however cost me in electricity. I will not repeat this fall.
I just got chicks this week. My plan is the same as it was for my chicks in the spring and summer. 2 weeks in the indoor brooder. 2 weeks in the outdoor brooder (a mini coop and run with a heat lamp). Gradually decrease the time the heat lamp is on and when they are big enough to not fit through the fence on the big girl run, out there they go. Is there a reason that you would keep them inside for four months?
I am in eastern Oklahoma. I will be starting to build the coop in about 2 weeks from now. I have been looking at plenty of coops on BYC and have a pretty good idea on my coop. I am thinking about rhode islands. Obviously they are cold hardy, and from what I have read they seem to do ok in the heat too. Any other bird suggestions? or any suggestions for that matter? Thanx everyone for your helpful info!
I just started and have not yet had to take my birds through the winter but I decided not to try to get new chicks after a mid August hatch batch. That group will be three months old before we get a hard freeze and will go into an insulated coop in their own section where I will be able to put in a heat lamp if needed. That may be overkill but why take the chance after I've used all of this time, energy, and organic feed to get them to that point? I am going to jump on the first opportunity to order from the hatcheries this Fall to make sure I get what I want. Last year I had to settle for some things, like straight runs, that I didn't really want to get and was unable to find some breeds available. My plan is to arrange for a hatch date in March and put them in the greenhouse which I will be opening up for my plant starts at that time. That way I won't be spending extra heat such as I would if they were in the barn where I have the present batch and won't have to bring them in the house where they will be stirring up dust. I won't have eggs until September, but my other batches will be producing by mid to late Winter with supplemental light.
I have gotten chicks in October and they were laying fine in February. I have never had any problems with mine laying in the winter but I live in Florida. Maybe climate has something to do with their laying habits. We do get some cold weather as I am from North Central Florida. I do have a night light on in my coop and in the winter months and I put another 15 watt light on a timer to go on early in the mornings. I used to keep their brooder in the barn covered, with a heat lamp on brackets and far away from the brooder cover so there would be no fires. Now I have a coop for my chicks. When they get old enough they are introduced to the flock and put in another coop. Right now I have two coops and soon will be building a third coop. The coops just keep getting bigger.
