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

[lazy gardener]

Oh in case you all have not notice OEF5 and I are married.

Nice that you both can share your poultry experience together! Many of us have spouses who merely tolerate the poultry, manure, non-stop gardening, incubator in the kitchen, and BYC!


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[Molpet]

We have a thermometer on the outside of the tank on the opposite side of the MHP. It is reading at 74. The chicks are out playing and eating and pooping prolifically right now. They seem comfortable to run around and have not yet gone back under the MHP for a warm up (just under 2 hours since they woke up). So far so good. Should we start seeing a downside we will definitely let you all know. For me right this moment the ability to wash this mat easily and reuse it for my seeds started in the spring as well as any time I want to grow a little treat for the girls off season is a huge plus.

Oh I should mention because it is plastic it sits on top of the MHP a little more solid than the fabric heating pads do. So it takes less support. We have it sitting on the MHP which is made of welded wire with 2" squares and no other support. As they get bigger we may have to modify, but it is really solid.

Oh in case you all have not notice OEF5 and I are married.

just wanting to make sure the chicks can't get in between the wire and the mat.. someone recently lost a chick that got stuck

.. I put my whole setup in a zippered pillow case so no one gets hurt/stuck/lost

 

[Serenashome]

just wanting to make sure the chicks can't get in between the wire and the mat.. someone recently lost a chick that got stuck

.. I put my whole setup in a zippered pillow case so no one gets hurt/stuck/lost

Good tip! Yes once they are a little bigger that could be possible. I'll grab a pillowcase and pop it in there before they go in for the night tonight. Thank you.

 

[Serenashome]

Oh in case you all have not notice OEF5 and I are married.

Nice that you both can share your poultry experience together! Many of us have spouses who merely tolerate the poultry, manure, non-stop gardening, incubator in the kitchen, and BYC!


Quote:

I laughed when I saw this too and wanted to say "no just married like the rest of you"

 

[lazy gardener]

Checked on my babies tonight. Not a single one of them was under the MHP. They are 2.5 weeks old now, and it's 43 degrees out. It's been nasty cold for the last week. I turned the pad down, and set it kitty corner close to the corner they were bedded down in. It was not quite dark out, so I'm hoping that if they feel the need for heat, they'll "feel their way" in under the pad.

 

[MamaDoolittle]

Just a picture update to me 2nd time using MHP. The babies are doing so well.


Bonnie is a Buff Orpington (my 3rd) and Eliza is my 1st EE. She is feathering really pretty.

 

[lazy gardener]

Checked on my babies tonight. Not a single one of them was under the MHP. They are 2.5 weeks old now, and it's 43 degrees out. It's been nasty cold for the last week. I turned the pad down, and set it kitty corner close to the corner they were bedded down in. It was not quite dark out, so I'm hoping that if they feel the need for heat, they'll "feel their way" in under the pad.

Update: Checked babies this morning. They're all up and running around. Interestingly enough, they moved MHP about 15" away from where I set it last night. Wonder how they did that? Must have been an interesting night!

 

[csneill]

So after lurking on this forum the last couple days & trying to read as much as I can I'm going to make the MHP today for my 7 wellies that I got on Monday. Basically I think I need a frame, a heating pad, something to secure the heat pad to the frame press & seal & possibly a pillowcase to go around it all to keep any babies from getting stuck in the frame- does that all sound about right? I'll send pics when I get a set up. Also looking forward to getting these babies outdoors before the 'required' 6 weeks or whatever they say!

 

[JLS]

I have some questions for everyone: What size/design should I use for brooding 15 Salmon Faverolles?

I was successful in raising 8 chicks this year with a 14"x22" MHP (one heating pad) outside in a separate part of the main coop. Which amazed me since I don't have an insulated coop and the nights dropped down into the single digits when they were 1 & 2 weeks old, not getting above 20 F for weeks. They never spent 1 day inside my house.

Do I double the size of what I did the last time? Do I leave both ends open? Also, I noticed that the chicks I raised (now 7 week old light Brahmas) are very skittish. Should I have the new batch inside for a week with the MHP in order to get them used to people before putting them outside?

I am deeply grateful to everyone who has shared their experiences both good and bad, all of which have educated me.

 

[Serenashome]

Well thanks to the great advice about the putting the MHP into a pillowcase so they can't get their little heads stuck in the wire frame from @Molpet we now have an updated version of our MHP.
We slid the frame and mat into a pillowcase, I slip stitched the bottom of the pillowcase to the wire frame so the pillowcase doesn't sag and placed a fresh towel on top.





Update on temp: The plant seeding mat we are using is holding at 95 without issue. They go right under it and come out to eat and play just like they should. All in all this has been a fabulous success. Our results (so far) appear to be exactly the same as @Blooie which is what we were hoping for as a best case scenario.

I cannot express how much I appreciate all the thoughtful advice and ideas we have taken from you all!