MHP (Mama Heating Pad) Question

[junebuggena]

@aart . @Blooie well that was certainly a silly question from me.

I fashioned my first MHP attempt this afternoon.









Didn't do nearly as good a job on the press and seal as Blooie. I need to find a dish towel rather than bath towel. Also need to drop over the front.

Any tips or cautions?

With only one way in and out, there is a significant risk of a chick getting lost in a corner and overheating. Also not going to be very easy to adjust as the chicks grow.

 

[ShannonO]

With only one way in and out, there is a significant risk of a chick getting lost in a corner and overheating.

Oh my. That is not good! I can definitely unscrew the back board. I had no idea. So many pictures in the big MHP thread, and I thought most only had an entrance in the front. Whoops!

Also not going to be very easy to adjust as the chicks grow. 

I assumed I could stick a piece of 1x6 under the sides to raise it up when needed. No?

 

[junebuggena]

Don't try to make it too complicated. Just a piece of wire fencing, a heating pad, and something to cover the pad to keep poo off it is really all you need. Adjustments to height are almost a daily thing, and it's really just a slight tweak. The chicks grow quickly and the pad needs to be at level of the chicks' backs. One inch is a lot and might put the pad up too high for the chicks to make contact with it. It might look like people only have the front open, but it's just an optical illusion. The front and back should be open, and there should be room from the chicks to exit out the back.

 

[ShannonO]

Don't try to make it too complicated. Just a piece of wire fencing, a heating pad, and something to cover the pad to keep poo off it is really all you need. Adjustments to height are almost a daily thing, and it's really just a slight tweak. The chicks grow quickly and the pad needs to be at level of the chicks' backs. One inch is a lot and might put the pad up too high for the chicks to make contact with it. It might look like people only have the front open, but it's just an optical illusion. The front and back should be open, and there should be room from the chicks to exit out the back.

I searched for wire fencing first on Craigslist, no dice, so I tried with hardware cloth that I had on hand. Too flimsy alone, so need a block. Tapered from front to back so chicks could choose their height. Le sigh. Back to Craigslist...

 

[junebuggena]

How about a tomato cage cut in half and then to length with the hardware cloth over that?

 

[haunani]

Would the small pad still be good for 9 chicks? lol

I just added two more to my order (Buckeye and Swedish Flower).

 

[3riverschick]

How about taking the tomato cage and setting it like a teepee. Then wrapping the warming pad around the top 3/4 of the cage. The chicks could run in the bottom. Think it would work.

 

[ShannonO]

How about a tomato cage cut in half and then to length with the hardware cloth over that?

That's certainly cheaper to buy if I have to go to the store. Will investigate.

Still getting over the surprise that chicks won't find there way out of a big opening. I believe it but wow.

 

[ShannonO]

@haunani Given many posts in the huge thread, my guess is the small pad will be fine but chicken math may not be?

I accidentally posted my questions starting here instead of the big thread and now I am hijacking. But thread etiquette dictates that I ask all my related questions in one thread.

 

[ShannonO]

Neighbor came through with some wire:

I can zip tie to the bricks and move them closer or further to raise or lower. Yea/nay?