Looking to raise chickens and build first coop

[robcam817]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens. Sad to say chicks/chickens can be quite ruthless and sometimes even resort to cannabalism

Must still be remnants of their dinosaur nature...;-)

 

[robcam817]

View attachment 1769394 My brooder is 2.5'x4'. There are 12 chicks in it. Will that brooder be large enough to hold them until 6 weeks when I can put them in the outdoor coop or will I have to setup another brooder before then?

I don't mind splitting the flock up, (I have another crate, heating plate, water/food etc...) but I'm afraid if I do, they'll be antagonistic towards each-other when they're reunited in the coop.

 

[DobieLover]

View attachment 1769394 My brooder is 2.5'x4'. There are 12 chicks in it. Will that brooder be large enough to hold them until 6 weeks when I can put them in the outdoor coop or will I have to setup another brooder before then?

I don't mind splitting the flock up, (I have another crate, heating plate, water/food etc...) but I'm afraid if I do, they'll be antagonistic towards each-other when they're reunited in the coop.

Do you have any chickens in the coop now?
If not, is there some reason not to put them in the coop with a MHP for a heat source?

 

[robcam817]

Do you have any chickens in the coop now?
If not, is there some reason not to put them in the coop with a MHP for a heat source?

I haven't built the coop yet....;-) Will take me several weeks to complete. And here in NW Montana, it still gets pretty cold at night and they're only 9-10 days old.

 

[DobieLover]

I haven't built the coop yet....;-) Will take me several weeks to complete. And here in NW Montana, it still gets pretty cold at night and they're only 9-10 days old.

Sounds like you're behind the 8 ball!
I brood my chicks in the coop in a built-in brooder using a brooder plate with a towel draped over it. They went in at one day old. They are fine. When they were 6 days old, it went down to 28F at night. That morning they were tearing around the brooder, eating and drinking.

 

[rjohns39]

The rule of thumb for CX is 1 SQ FT / Bird up to 3 weeks. They grow faster than large fowl and I've determined that I can actually get away with .6 sq ft per bird up to three weeks. My nutritionist swears that I'm limiting their growth by doing that, but uncertain that's a bad thing. My last good batch of CX came in on average at 6lbs carcass weight with the lowest mortality rate. I know this is not a one-one comparison, but thought that with this data you could make a better decision. My LF birds are about the size of a three week CX around 5 weeks. I'm sure others have different results.

 

[drumstick diva]

Welcome to Backyard chickens , the pulse beat of the chicken community

 

[robcam817]

Sounds like you're behind the 8 ball!
I brood my chicks in the coop in a built-in brooder using a brooder plate with a towel draped over it. They went in at one day old. They are fine. When they were 6 days old, it went down to 28F at night. That morning they were tearing around the brooder, eating and drinking.

Indeed...;-) Better get to it, huh?

 

[robcam817]

The rule of thumb for CX is 1 SQ FT / Bird up to 3 weeks. They grow faster than large fowl and I've determined that I can actually get away with .6 sq ft per bird up to three weeks. My nutritionist swears that I'm limiting their growth by doing that, but uncertain that's a bad thing. My last good batch of CX came in on average at 6lbs carcass weight with the lowest mortality rate. I know this is not a one-one comparison, but thought that with this data you could make a better decision. My LF birds are about the size of a three week CX around 5 weeks. I'm sure others have different results.

Thank you. So it sounds like I'm going to have to break out the other crate in another 10 days or so. I swear I can see them growing before my very eyes. Every morning there's more feather development, size etc... Better get started on that coop!

 

[robcam817]

Thank you. So it sounds like I'm going to have to break out the other crate in another 10 days or so. I swear I can see them growing before my very eyes. Every morning there's more feather development, size etc... Better get started on that coop!

Doubled the size of the brooder today. 60 sqft. That should last them till they're 6-8 weeks and I can move them to the coop, (note to self: start building the coop).