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

[Beekissed]

I've managed to have my chicks out every day this week, today being the longest since it was actually near 50 degrees this morning, so I shoved them outside before I left for work. Husband saw a couple of them under the heating pad earlier today, but by the end of the day, they were all piled in together at the door. I should be able to shove them outside before work again tomorrow, but obviously, there's no guarantee that they'll actually use the MHP. When I put them out this morning, I put them under the MHP one at a time as I pulled them from their tote and held them up, briefly, so they could get a feel for the heat. A few friends have mentioned blocking their space to force them to be around the heat source more, but they're getting so darn big that I'm still hesitant. They were squabbling in the brooder cage inside a couple of days ago and I see that becoming a thing if I continue to keep them in a smaller space. I'm actually considering a redesign for the MHP that won't feel so "creepy" for them. I'll post it if I can get it done this weekend.

They'll be 5 weeks old this weekend. If I keep putting them outside every day, is it reasonable that I could just force them to stay outside overnight around 6 weeks of age? I've tried placing them under the MHP in the evenings, but with 13 of them, they wander back out before I can get another under it with them, or they come out as a team.

At those temps and that age, they could go out in the coop for good and without any heat source at all. Just give them access to roosts or a huddle box if they still want such a thing and let them decide where to be.

 

[junebuggena]

I've managed to have my chicks out every day this week, today being the longest since it was actually near 50 degrees this morning, so I shoved them outside before I left for work. Husband saw a couple of them under the heating pad earlier today, but by the end of the day, they were all piled in together at the door. I should be able to shove them outside before work again tomorrow, but obviously, there's no guarantee that they'll actually use the MHP. When I put them out this morning, I put them under the MHP one at a time as I pulled them from their tote and held them up, briefly, so they could get a feel for the heat. A few friends have mentioned blocking their space to force them to be around the heat source more, but they're getting so darn big that I'm still hesitant. They were squabbling in the brooder cage inside a couple of days ago and I see that becoming a thing if I continue to keep them in a smaller space. I'm actually considering a redesign for the MHP that won't feel so "creepy" for them. I'll post it if I can get it done this weekend.

They'll be 5 weeks old this weekend. If I keep putting them outside every day, is it reasonable that I could just force them to stay outside overnight around 6 weeks of age? I've tried placing them under the MHP in the evenings, but with 13 of them, they wander back out before I can get another under it with them, or they come out as a team.

Don't worry. If they need a warm up, they know where they need to go. And don't underestimate the amount of body heat generated by a pile of snuggling chicks. Leave them out with their heating pad now. You are probably trying to get them under the pad too early in the evening.

 

[lpyrbby]

At those temps and that age, they could go out in the coop for good and without any heat source at all. Just give them access to roosts or a huddle box if they still want such a thing and let them decide where to be.

If it were staying in the 50s overnight, I would, but it's cooling back off for a few days this weekend. 53/38 for a high/low on both Friday and Saturday. I'm more worried that they haven't had enough time to really get acclimated to those cooler temps, even though the first time I put them out, it was 50s. They're mostly feathered, but not fully yet. They also started treatment for coccidia on Monday night so I'm worried about that being a player for them as well. The previously lethargic ones are looking good enough to be outside with the others, it's just the 30s that I'm worried about.

I may also need to feel confident in my words to my husband about leaving them in the cooler temps LOL It's supposed to be 73/53 tomorrow. I guess I can go ahead and do a test run and leave them out overnight? The run is 8 feet long and they are sleeping at one end while the heat source is at the other end. I'm going to leave a solar pool light by the MHP side of the pen to hopefully keep a little light in that area for them tomorrow, in hopes they'll consider staying there.

 

[lpyrbby]

Don't worry. If they need a warm up, they know where they need to go. And don't underestimate the amount of body heat generated by a pile of snuggling chicks. Leave them out with their heating pad now. You are probably trying to get them under the pad too early in the evening.

I'm not so sure they do in the dark

I made them stay out there til 7p tonight since the temps were much milder. Other nights it's been in the 40s so I've collected them when closing the coop for the adults around 615p. I may just try to leave them outdoors tomorrow night and see how they fair. It looks like tomorrow night's low will be the high for Friday, so it'll get cooler during the day when the sun is out.

 

[junebuggena]

When I put 4 week old chicks out in my grow out coop last month, the projected low for the week was supposed to be about 38*. Turns out we had a cold snap. Temps got much colder than forecasted, down into the teens. The chicks did just fine. They really are a lot more hardy than most people will have you think.

 

[lpyrbby]

When I put 4 week old chicks out in my grow out coop last month, the projected low for the week was supposed to be about 38*. Turns out we had a cold snap. Temps got much colder than forecasted, down into the teens. The chicks did just fine. They really are a lot more hardy than most people will have you think.

Thank you for that. I'm still having doubts because of noise from other people telling me not to do it. It's really hard to take that leap sometimes when I really don't want them to die because of a decision I made, ya know?

 

[Shezadandy]

Thank you for that. I'm still having doubts because of noise from other people telling me not to do it. It's really hard to take that leap sometimes when I really don't want them to die because of a decision I made, ya know?

If they seem to prefer the other side of the run, any chance you can move their heat source to that side?
Or just make them a "nest" on their preferred side with sides high enough that any cold wind won't chill them... can be as simple as putting up a couple pieces of plywood outside the run. Wind is what steals heat. i.e. if your weather forecast has winds from the south west, put boards up on the south and west sides of the run. Or you can just wait for the cooler temps to pass, especially if it's only a couple nights.

 

[Blooie]

Think about it this way - if they had a real Mama Hen, do you think that they'd all fit under her at 5 weeks? Nope. She's usually teaching them to roost about this stage. They usually snuggle together because they all just plain can't all get under her anymore. And with as much feathering as they now have, they don't really need the additional heat. The thing we tell folks about using MHP is that the chicks regulate their own comfort. So that's what they are doing. And if you are putting them in unfamiliar surroundings, they'll naturally huddle together for security anyway. Chicks, like chickens, don't do change well.

My first batch of chicks, raised under a heat lamp, went out at 5 weeks. I just couldn't handle the mess, the dust and the noise anymore. That first night I went nuts. I was in and out of bed all night long! I'd put a wireless thermometer in the coop, and a heat lamp, and I put the receiver next to my bed. I kept watching that temperature go down...35......30.....and when it hit 20 I was in a panic. I kept putting on my boots and a heavy coat over my jammies and running out there with a flashlight to check them. Every time I did, they were nowhere near the heat lamp - they were snuggled down in a pile of beaks and feathers in front of the pop door. I went out the next day expecting to find chick-cicles, and instead I saw 23 very happy chicks waiting for me to open the door. They were eating and doing just great. Second night, same story, except I wisely stayed in bed and only got up one time as it hit 19 degrees. They were in exactly the same place they'd been the night before. On the third day I took out the heat lamp. They weren't using it anyway. That night it snowed. This was all during the first week of April. We didn't get our last snowfall until June 6th. Yeah. Delicate? The only critter freezing was me. And these were chicks that I hadn't had the good sense to slowly acclimate...they went from the house out to the coop in one fell swoop. I don't recommend that, of course, but now I start even home incubator hatched chicks directly outdoors in the spring. Spring chick season in Wyoming is still pretty cold compared to much of the country, but they are still weaned completely off the heating pad by around 4 weeks.

They are indeed hardier than we give them credit for. You have to do what you think is right, but at 5 weeks old trying to stuff them under a heating pad they are clearly telling you they don't want to be under anymore is kinda like an exercise in futility.

 

[e72071]

I got my chicks today and I'm having trouble regulating the temp on my MHP. I can't get it to go past 84 degrees. I have the sunbeam express HP. Any suggestions or ideas to what I'm doing wrong?

 

[junebuggena]

I got my chicks today and I'm having trouble regulating the temp on my MHP. I can't get it to go past 84 degrees. I have the sunbeam express HP. Any suggestions or ideas to what I'm doing wrong?

Missing the point. You aren't heating the 'cave'. The chicks get warm by direct contact with the pad. Ignore the exact temperature, it doesn't matter one bit. What are the chicks telling you?