Keeping Chicks in the same room as other animals?

[middlechick18]

Can I keep 4 chicks (in a brooder cage like a hamster cage with grid walls, not solid walls) in the same room as 2 guinea pigs (also in a different cage)? The room is a pretty small bedroom but I was wondering if the chicks or guinea pigs would have "germs" that could be dangerous to each other. Are there any germs carried in the air that would be dangerous?

 

[PirocaKeeper]

I think as long as you keep both cages really clean, there should be no problems. Just don't put the cages right next to each other where the guinea pigs have reach/access to the chicks.

 

[aart]

Good advice above.......
.....just wanted to add that you make sure the cage will be big enough for the chicks for a few weeks, they grow fast!!

 

[middlechick18]

How much room will four chicks (two gold stars, an australorp, and a rir) need at 6 weeks (when I plan to move them to the coop- there are no older chickens)? The set-up we currently have is 20'' by 30'' providing about 4.1 square feet. We are so excited for our first chicks!

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome!! They will be BIG at six weeks, and can move out before then. That small cage is a very short term home for them. Plan on at least twice the space very soon, and they could move to your coop sooner with a heat lamp. Meanwhile, the dust they produce will amaze you, and be bad to breathe. Mary

 

[mymilliefleur]

I think as long as you keep both cages really clean, there should be no problems. Just don't put the cages right next to each other where the guinea pigs have reach/access to the chicks.

X2. Congrats on your growing flock!

 

[Halloweengirl13]

We keep our brooders in the same room as our rabbits and pigeons and my pet mice and gerbils. Everybody has been doing fine.

 

[Urban Flock]

Welcome!! They will be BIG at six weeks, and can move out before then. That small cage is a very short term home for them. Plan on at least twice the space very soon, and they could move to your coop sooner with a heat lamp. Meanwhile, the dust they produce will amaze you, and be bad to breathe. Mary

x 2

 

[newwestchick]

Welcome!
You'll likely want to move them fairly soon to the coop - you can do so at any time since you don't have older birds in there, as long as they can go under the heat lamp to warm up the ambient temperature doesn't matter too much. They're going to make a ton of very fine dust, be prepared for much more cleaning than your guinea pigs need if you decide to keep them indoors

 

[aart]

How much room will four chicks (two gold stars, an australorp, and a rir) need at 6 weeks (when I plan to move them to the coop- there are no older chickens)? The set-up we currently have is 20'' by 30'' providing about 4.1 square feet. We are so excited for our first chicks!

That will last about a week or two.

What is your climate?
Putting your location in your profile can help folks make better suggestions.


Here's my notes on chick heat, hope something in there might help:
They need to be pretty warm(~85F on the brooder floor right under the lamp) for the first day or two, especially if they have been shipped, until they get to eating, drinking and moving around well. But after that it's best to keep them as cool as possible for optimal feather growth and quicker integration to outside temps. A lot of chick illnesses are attributed to too warm of a brooder. I do think it's a good idea to use a thermometer on the floor of the brooder to check the temps, especially when new at brooding, later i still use it but more out of curiosity than need.

The best indicator of heat levels is to watch their behavior:
If they are huddled/piled up right under the lamp and cheeping very loudly, they are too cold.
If they are spread out on the absolute edges of the brooder as far from the lamp as possible, panting and/or cheeping very loudly, they are too hot.
If they sleep around the edge of the lamp calmly just next to each other and spend time running all around the brooder they are juuuust right!

The lamp is best at one end of the brooder with food/water at the other cooler end of the brooder, so they can get away from the heat or be under it as needed. Wattage of 'heat' bulb depends on size of brooder and ambient temperature of room brooder is in. Regular incandescent bulbs can be used, you might not need a 'heat bulb'. You can get red colored incandescent bulbs at a reptile supply source. A dimmer extension cord is an excellent way to adjust the output of the bulb to change the heat without changing the height of the lamp.