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

[ShrekDawg]

I'm amazed i got any work done today. I took the portable camera from our security system and placed it in with the chicks so I could "keep an eye on them" while in my office today. My brooder looks small from this vantage point but it's 5'x3.5'. Enjoy this little dose of cuteness. Hopefully I did this correctly. I've been told the camera has to be replaced for it's original purpose at night.

So precious!

 

[jrjoplin]

You might just forget after you reposition it to point under the MHP Is it infared?

It does have infrared. I could always leave it out in the brooder till all the chicks are tucked in for the night before I move it back inside.

 

[perchie.girl]

You guys are funny with your thingy's and doohickey's LOL! I am SO glad I am not the only one who uses those words...much to my hubby's shegrin

So this weekend was interesting and I was VERY thankful for MHP...again! We went to town on Saturday, checked all the chickens big and small, filled feeders etc and left until that afternoon. We get home and realize that the electricity had gone off like an hour after we left :O I was SO scared to go down to the coop, but I did and you know what? Everyone was perfectly fine! Most were under mama, some were out eating, basically a normal day! I was SO thankful for this option because I got to thinking, IF we had used a heat lamp they may not have faired as well? Who knows really, they would each other to huddle together and keep warm, so maybe they would've been fine?? Anyway, I was so thankful for MHP

And a question (I REALLY don't want to hijack but starting a thread for this simple question seems silly

)...do all breeds of chicks develop similarly? Like with buff o's the females get tail feathers and such quicker than the males, is that the same with all breeds?

pretty much.... There are some differences in breeds with regard to wing feather development. Some breeds you can sex the birds simply by looking at their Wittle wing feathers.

deb

 

[perchie.girl]

I wonder if this same method would work for turkeys? I know they like it slightly warmer than chicks. We are thinking of getting a couple and I really don't want to do the raising inside bit with them if it can be avoided. We're at the point in the year where it's nearly 80 during the day and 50s at night here.

I would say yes. I think there was a video that showed Turkeys in with the chickies....

deb

 

[Blooie]

I would say yes. I think there was a video that showed Turkeys in with the chickies....

deb

Yep, Patrice Lopatin's video has turkeys in with the chicks.

 

[COChix]

Hatch is over and shut down, no more hatch. The three amigos are doing well....first night they put themselves away at bedtime, second night, they put themselves away at dusk. No extra lights on The house. Tonight we ate dinner in the dinning room, which is where the brooder is set up. They woke up and came out chirping away. After we turned lights off, one chirped a bit but found it's way under the pad after about s minute. Easy group so far. Hoping they go outside tomorrow.

 

[aart]

Hatch is over and shut down, no more hatch. The three amigos are doing well....first night they put themselves away at bedtime, second night, they put themselves away at dusk. No extra lights on The house. Tonight we ate dinner in the dinning room, which is where the brooder is set up. They woke up and came out chirping away. After we turned lights off, one chirped a bit but found it's way under the pad after about s minute. Easy group so far. Hoping they go outside tomorrow.

Nice!...How many did you end up with?

 

[GranolaGirl72]

Oh my goodness! I can hear my daughter's voice in my head... SO FLUFFY!!!!!

 

[nickyblase]

I wish I had stumbled upon this thread sooner! I raised my second batch of girls (12 black comets) in a brooder in my basement (heat lamp for first 4 weeks, then no supplemental heat). Now they are approx. 9 weeks old, and are going completely stir crazy!

I could use some advice at this point-

The new coop isn't finished yet, will probably be another two weeks or so. The weather here is still pretty chilly (today high of 39, overnight below freezing, but the next 10 days or so should be at or above 50 during the day, again with night temps in the 30's).

I have a space for them under my deck to use until the coop is ready, a decent sized run with perches, and a makeshift coop to protect them from the cold and to sleep. Since the birds are so big, using a MHP out there will only benefit one bird at a time, which won't necessarily do much overnight when they are trying to sleep, and the temps are at their coldest.

Will they need supplemental heat at this point, since they haven't really been "hardened off"? The basement is pretty consistently in the mid 60's, but on warmer days I have been leaving the door to the basement open to get some of the cooler air in there.

 

[junebuggena]

You need to 'harden' them before you leave them outside overnight. They need to adjust to those cooler temps. Put them out for a few hours each day, gradually lengthening the time they are out. In a week, they can stay out permanently, without heat.