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

[junebuggena]

So, my 3-week-old chicks are spending their first night outside without heat. The room they've been brooded in is about 55*, and that haven't been using their heating pad for a few days now.

 

[Blooie]

Mine were evicted a couple of days ago, and they are doing great. They have a huge half log in the run with the hollow side down, and they figured out that they can fit but the Bigs can't. So tonight when I checked on them, guess where they all were for sleep time? Yep, under the log. Beats using the nest boxes like my last group of chicks did!

The newbies are now out in the run for the first time tonight. They have their heating pad and it's not supposed to get too cold, so I'm not even worried about them. It gets easier every time!!

 

[Serenashome]

Our girls will be three weeks on Monday. They have been sleeping on top of the MHP rather than under it. We have it turned down to 75 now. I tried to look through the thread to figure out when to take the MHP out of the brooder and when to move them into the coop without the MHP. I can't find it.

So at what point do we remove the MHP and at what point do we make the big move to the outside coop?

 

[Blooie]

Our girls will be three weeks on Monday. They have been sleeping on top of the MHP rather than under it. We have it turned down to 75 now. I tried to look through the thread to figure out when to take the MHP out of the brooder and when to move them into the coop without the MHP. I can't find it.

So at what point do we remove the MHP and at what point do we make the big move to the outside coop?

Well, since I brood outdoors from the start, I'm not much help here. If they aren't using the pad at all, turn it down to it's lowest setting and watch them. If they don't seem to care one way or the other, it's time. They'll still sit on top and may even scoot underneath, but they're most likely doing that out of habit.

If it was me, and the temps were nice enough, I'd take them and their cave outside without the heating pad and set it up for a few days. They probably don't need the heat but they are used to the cave, which can make them feel a little more secure in strange new surroundings. You can also make a huddle box, recommended by @azygous

A lot depends on their feathering and your temperatures, and you're a better judge of that than I am from here. Like I said, mine go out after just a day or so. I keep them in just to make sure they aren't suffering from shipping stress and that they know what food and water is and how to use the cave. Then I evict them.

 

[azygous]

Our girls will be three weeks on Monday. They have been sleeping on top of the MHP rather than under it. We have it turned down to 75 now. I tried to look through the thread to figure out when to take the MHP out of the brooder and when to move them into the coop without the MHP. I can't find it.

So at what point do we remove the MHP and at what point do we make the big move to the outside coop?

What I would do in your case, is to move the chicks with their MHP into the coop. Set it on the lowest setting at night, but leave it off during the day.

Go out after dark after the evening has cooled way down and observe where the chicks are sleeping. Do this each night. When the chicks quit using MHP, then you can remove it.

It's sort of like letting a toddler use water wings until they get the courage to swim without them.

 

[junebuggena]

Our girls will be three weeks on Monday. They have been sleeping on top of the MHP rather than under it. We have it turned down to 75 now. I tried to look through the thread to figure out when to take the MHP out of the brooder and when to move them into the coop without the MHP. I can't find it.

So at what point do we remove the MHP and at what point do we make the big move to the outside coop?

Mine get brooded out in an unfinished room next to the garage. The concrete floor out there helps keep a constant temp of about 55*, which is similar to our usual weather. By the end of the first week, my chicks are down to the middle setting. By the end of two weeks, they are on the lowest setting. Meanwhile, everyday that is sunny and over 60*, they go out to the grow-out coop for playtime. My latest batch of chicks stopped using the pad cave entirely by 2.5 weeks. They went out for playtime yesterday, and I didn't bring them back in. First night with no heat. Nighttime temp was about 50*, just slightly cooler than they've been the last couple nights.

 

[bruceha2000]

LOVE the innovation!!!! I'd love to hear more about this brooder, especially if used in colder ambient temps and if it's still maintaining the stable temps enough to keep the chicks warm. This one probably deserves its own thread or at least post it to the DIY thread so other folks can get a look at it.

I agree. Innovation is great but this, given there is no heating pad, it isn't REALLY a MHP brooder.

At 8 weeks, it is safe to say this is a girl?
EEs are so confusing to me

That is why there is a thread dedicated to it

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/463817/easter-egger-sexing-tips-and-tricks-pictures-included

That amount of red in the comb at 8 weeks is scary from the "I sure hope it is a pullet" viewpoint. However the feather patterning is SO uniform, it screams PULLET! Look for signs of a mahogany/rusty red patches on the wing bows. If you start seeing those, it is very likely a cockerel.

 

[welby1205]

Ok what kind of wire are you all using to make the dome shape? I thought I had a brilliant idea of using the top of a cat carrier, using the bungees to put it in the inside, but I think they may get stuck behind it.... Oh and right now it's 71 where they would be kept, and it's only going to get warmer. Plus, I'm pretty sure they are not day old, maybe a couple days.

 

[Jensownzoo]

Ok what kind of wire are you all using to make the dome shape? I thought I had a brilliant idea of using the top of a cat carrier, using the bungees to put it in the inside, but I think they may get stuck behind it.... Oh and right now it's 71 where they would be kept, and it's only going to get warmer. Plus, I'm pretty sure they are not day old, maybe a couple days.

I think most people are using wire fencing scraps, although a few have repurposed tomato cages. The key is to have the wire bendable enough to be able to form it, but sturdy enough so when they pile on top it supports their weight (and doesn't collapse and squish anyone unfortunate enough to be underneath).

 

[Blooie]

Ok what kind of wire are you all using to make the dome shape? I thought I had a brilliant idea of using the top of a cat carrier, using the bungees to put it in the inside, but I think they may get stuck behind it.... Oh and right now it's 71 where they would be kept, and it's only going to get warmer. Plus, I'm pretty sure they are not day old, maybe a couple days.

Welcome! Actually you don't want a dome shape. That puts the heating pad too far away from the chicks, especially in the center where it arches, and it also makes it difficult for them to get up on top the way they like to do.

My frame is just a bit of wire fencing bent over into kinda like this shape: \______/ I bungeed the heating pad on the inside, then flipped it over. You want the heating pad to come into close contact with the chicks' backs. A towel covered with Press 'n Seal on top and it's good to go. (Press 'n Seal is optional)

You know that photos of your setup and your chicks is your dues payment, right?

Edited: @Jensownzoo beat me to it!