Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

[AlHawk]

I live in Central FL and we got all the way down to 63 last night and only 75 today. Our feed store gets chicks all year but he'll hold off in Jul/Aug because of the heat. I'm picking up 8 tomorrow and using a MHP design for the first time. I used a dog kennel with a shopping cart panel as the tunnel. I'll take a pic tomorrow. I'm like a kid in a candy shop waiting.........

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Yeah, there are some feed store chicks in early spring, but then no chicks until mid-October - it's just WAY too hot until then. Mid to late fall is a nice time for baby chicks here. Nice sunny day in the 70s today...

- Ant Farm

 

[ShrekDawg]

Cleaned out the chickens brooder while they were outside yesterday amd while I did replaced the heating pad since everything had to come out to clean anyway.

I let them out later than usual and didn't start cleaning till later too so it was getting dark so I just put the brooder back together (took everything apart to clean), put new shavings in, and brought them in before putting the water and food back, since it was already really dark.

ANYWAY. I came up with the idea for a roost.

We have a 10 foot 2x4 I cut to 5 feet each when I was first making the brooder as I wanted to frame it so I just used one of those, cutting a foot off so it would fit, but we have no brackets I don't think so for now I decided to put it on bricks and have two bricks on each side to hold it in. Also put the extra foot on one end going the other way but just sitting on top instead of the in the brick thing. Put the both maybe 4 bricks high then two on the sides of the main one to hold it in with stepping stone bricks.

They all fly up to the roosts outside and halfway up the ramp, both wayyy higher, so I figured it would be fine and was hoping they would be roosting in the morning.

Well I woke them up and out they ran from under the wood.

What am I doing wrong?

I did just turn the light off last night rather than making sure they were on it BUT that's usually fine because lately they get exhausted going outside so just eat, drink, and sleep when they come back in so my new system to not check them again and wake them up is I just turn the lights off, no sunset, and if they freak out the light goes back on until there is no noise or happy noises. Usually they don't freak out. So I assumed they were settled, hoping they were on the roost.

Especially since they all perch on top of MHP instead of going under now so I really don't get it?

But maybe MHP was simply too small now? They are big. Maybe they think this is just another frame just without the pad?

Outside, since it was already pretty dark, they settled too but instead of in the coop or on an outside roost, they were just piled in a corner under the coop part of the run. But during the day they all use the roosts and they perch on top of MHP every night so I really thought they were ready.

Maybe I need to lower the roost just a bit so that they simply CAN'T go under it? And hopefully since there's really no other good sleeping spot they would go on it? Or maybe I need to place them on top of it? Or both? But then that wastes a lot of floor space. I just don't understand it because everything points to them being ready. Yet they go under.

And yesterday I saw a BO scratch the shavings, I figured looking for food, but instead she just plopped down, feet under body, all comfy. It's almost like she made a nest.. and an Australorp did too. Yet way too young. I know they're just settling in, getting comfy, but kinda weird. A bunch of them do it. This was before I added the roost. Anyway, I just don't understand why they won't use it when they love the one outside.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Sorry for the length though. Btw they turned 6 weeks old on Monday so are now closer to 7

 

[ShrekDawg]

Also as for the feed store thing, we were planning on getting chickens way back in spring from our feed store so we went around I think January and asked and he said they start taking orders in February. Not sure when they actually get the chicks in but I would assume not much later, maybe March. Don't know how late they carry them either but when we went to get supplies for ours they didn't have any so I'm pretty sure it's spring only

 

[perchie.girl]

Sorry for the length though. Btw they turned 6 weeks old on Monday so are now closer to 7

I dont have a problem with length I have been known to write a book or too as well.

But If you broke up your text into paragraphs That would be wonderful

 

[ShrekDawg]

I dont have a problem with length I have been known to write a book or too as well.

But If you broke up your text into paragraphs That would be wonderful

True! Forgot about that, thank you.

But oh yeah, I probably should have done that. Sorry! I guess I just forgot cause I didn't mean to make it so long. I'll go try to figure where to put them and do so

Also, that said, today I noticed all of them on it at one point or another (they stayed inside today cause there were bees in their run but that's another story and I was in the garage and got to observe the chicks a lot cause I was making an addition but that's also another story) and they were mostly just sitting there but also playing or possibly further establishing rank so HOPEFULLY now that they've been on it that means they will roost but we'll see. I took off the stepping stone bricks too cause they seem to fly on and off and they were in the way.

I'll work on the paragraphs though.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Probably too many paragraphs now but I wasn't sure where to separate so I figured better that than too few. Also note the addition above. I would have edited it in but I'm weird and wanted to leave it as is

But yeah, they were on it today so hopefully they will be roosting.

Also I added a huge pile of leaves since they couldn't go outside today and since they were a bit.nervous about me being there and they LOVED it

 

[perchie.girl]

Probably too many paragraphs now but I wasn't sure where to separate so I figured better that than too few. Also note the addition above. I would have edited it in but I'm weird and wanted to leave it as is

But yeah, they were on it today so hopefully they will be roosting.

Also I added a huge pile of leaves since they couldn't go outside today and since they were a bit.nervous about me being there and they LOVED it

A paragraph is created around a subject or thought or what ever. You did Good.

deb

 

[ShrekDawg]

A paragraph is created around a subject or thought or what ever.  You did Good.   

deb

Yeah, I got that much and theoretically it should be easy but I just never really know when to actually break i off cause I ramble so much and plus I mean technically it sort of is talking about the same thing i also never proof read though and i think i tend to ramble or go off topic a lot so the other problem is sometimes I'll be saying one thing and either add this big long off topic addition in the middle of it or even if the addition's short, I'll just keep talking about other things and sort of forget the original thing was completely different and yeah haha I think if I proofread it I would remember that. Anyway, thank you though.