Moving to the coop

[Darguth]

So my girls are now 6.5 weeks old and they are getting very restless in their brooder which they are outgrowing. I'm anxious to get them into their coop, but I'm not sure if it's warm enough for them.

I live in mid-Michigan and nighttime temps are still falling into the high 30's for the next couple of weeks. Also, my coop is a raised tractor design and the floor is just an open screen.

It gets up into the mid-to-high 60's during the day, but I'm concerned the nights will be too cold without a heat lamp, which I can't get into the coop very easily given the design.

Thoughts?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I think they're ready. I'd cover half the floor with cardboard or plywood and put some shavings on that part to give them a warm place to hunker down.

 

[csaylorchickens]

When in doubt you can always use supplemental heat. I have my ecoglow 20 and when I move them out to the coop I'll keep it out there just a bit longer. I'm moving them out there when they are 6 weeks and I'll keep the ecoglow out there till they are 12 weeks. There are also heating plates you can use that are low cost too, you can hang them on the wall or the top of the coop

 

[Darguth]

I think they're ready. I'd cover half the floor with cardboard or plywood and put some shavings on that part to give them a warm place to hunker down.

Well, at the very least they'd have the nesting boxes with shavings in them if they wanted to get away from the colder main area of the coop. Those are pretty well sheltered and about 18"x18" or so in size, so they could huddle together for warmth since they are still only young pullets and relatively small.

 

[KirstenColorado]

Are they fully feathered out? Including the chest area?

 

[Darguth]

Yes they are fully feathered.

 

[KirstenColorado]

From what our locals say, they should be okay at least during the day, maybe back inside at night. One of those warming plate kind of things looks pretty neat, too--maybe get one?

 

[manychitlens]

I like the idea of the heat plate thing. I wouldn't recommend allowing them to sleep in the nesting boxes, because that can be a hard habit to break.

 

[csaylorchickens]

well mine are 4 weeks old today, they have tons of feathers. Their little butts are still needing more coverage and their heads but besides that they are looking good. I live in cali, tonight is going to get as low as 43 out, and I am keeping them in the coop with the ecoglow 20 running so they should be fine. They hate the brooder and I hate having to keep taking them in at night. I think they will be ok. I ll be checking on them since I work nights from home I can keep an eye

 

[Blooie]

Last year mine were out with no supplemental heat at 5.5 weeks in Northern Wyoming, and it was in the 20s in the coop at night. Oh, I felt guilty and put a heat lamp out there for them at first, but they didn't even go near it...they piled in a heap of feathers and feet in the corner by the pop door. I kept getting up to check them the first night. The second night I only checked them once....same story as the night before. The third day the heat lamp came out. If they didn't want it I wasn't risking it. That night it snowed. And it snowed off and on until the 6th of June. If I'd have waited for the weather to be "warm enough" they'd have darn near been old enough to start laying eggs in the brooder.

Now I start them outside in a pen in the run from the beginning. No heat lamp - just a heating pad cave covered with straw. My third batch being done this way is out there now, and it's been down to 19 degrees. They are doing just great! All healthy, feathering well, and loving the entire set up. They spend most of their time running around and exploring, and if they feel the need for a little heat they run into their cave. But as soon as they are warmed back up, they scurry back out. Two nights ago we had a power outage sometime during the night. Winds were howling, sustained at 30-40 with gusts of 50-60 and the snow was coming down sideways. The power coming back on about 4 am is what woke Hubby up, and he woke me up with two words, "The chicks!" I had a batch of week old Brahmas in the pen. We hightailed it out there. The heating pad was off, and we don't know how long the power had been off. The straw inside, around, and on top of the heating pad cave held enough residual warmth to sustain the chicks and we got that thing turned back on real quick. When I went out later to check them, I was greeted with the sight of 8 little hineys in the air and 8 little heads in the feeder. These little critters are tougher than we give them credit for, I think.