Need help asap

[Mandy0922]

Hello my names Mandy I just got 10 baby chickens for my daughter on Saturday and the nights have been pretty warm up until tonight its only in the low 60s high 50s but it feels freezing out. I just went to check on them and they're all shivering badly they're in an enclosed coop but the floor is wire and the winds blowing up through it. I have a heat lamp in there but its not a really strong one .Is it ok if I put a towel in there for them to lay on just for the next 3 hours until the sun comes up and I can fix the problem .

 

[Shezadandy]

If they're shivering you must get them warmed up RIGHT NOW. If you have a box, can you bring them in the house until you can rectify the situation? You're going to need to put something more solid on the floor. They need to be in a DRAFT FREE situation. That means no air blowing up from below- it's robbing them of any heat they're getting from your lamp.

 

[Shezadandy]

If you can bring them inside to warm up, they can't just be left with the heating lamp blaring down on the box - that will turn into an overheat situation (also deadly) unless it's a VERY big box. Have you got a heating pad - one that does NOT have Auto-Shut-Off, i.e. it needs to be on (and stay on) all night. You could make a "Momma Heating Pad" which is basically a cave with a heating pad on top to mimic being under the hen.

 

[Shezadandy]

If you have a heating pad, anything to make a little cave will serve them well. Think kitchen items- do you have a turkey roaster rack? One of those temporary kitchen shelves that could be bent to the right position? The main requirements are that one side must slope to the ground - this works because they press their back against the heating pad just as they would a hen. Here's the main thread. And I attached pictures of what we did for ours. You'll have to place the chicks under it the first time. It will warm them up quickly as long as there's no draft and as long as the box allows them to step out of the cave.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update.956958/

 

[Mandy0922]

Hello my names Mandy I just got 10 baby chickens for my daughter on Saturday and the nights have been pretty warm up until tonight its only in the low 60s high 50s but it feels freezing out. I just went to check on them and they're all shivering badly they're in an enclosed coop but the floor is wire and the winds blowing up through it. I have a heat lamp in there but its not a really strong one .Is it ok if I put a towel in there for them to lay on just for the next 3 hours until the sun comes up and I can fix the problem .

 

[Mandy0922]

They're in a fairly large coop but the floor in their little sleeping area is wire so the poop will fall through but now I'm worried because the heat can't stay in there

 

[Mandy0922]

I have them inside my house now and I'm gonna set them up a place in my bathtub with some food and water while I run to the store to get some things to make their house more chick friendly because tonight it's going to be in the 30s

 

[renk777]

I agree....they need to be inside right now. Great idea above with cooking rack! Once they're ready for outside, if you can place a board on the wire that's flush with the edges, that should block most of the draft. Then pack hutch area with straw and shavings. That's what we do when we move ours out in the Spring. We tarp entire back half of tractor to prevent drafts or moisture from getting in. So once they're feathered, that should suffice. I wouldn't worry about poop dropping down on board. We put baking pans under roosts and scrape/sweep out daily or every other day. Worth the effort to ensure they're warm ad dry.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Did you ever say how old the chicks are? If they were day olds when you got them, they are way too young to be in a building with a wire floor that allows the wind to blow in. They need some bedding. You could keep them in the coop but cover the wire floor with wood that you can put bedding on and won't allow their body heat to be wicked away. They need cool space but they definitely need a warm spot tis at least 90F so they can find their comfort zone.

 

[Shezadandy]

Thank you for bringing them inside. Good thinking on the bathtub. Until they grow their feathers, they have no ability to regulate their own temperature. If they're out with a hen, she gives them all the shelter they need even in cold temperatures, but when it's just them, they need a lot more help. I get wanting the poop to fall through the floor- but even with grown chickens, you don't want drafts in the coop, especially where it gets cold. Ventilation is one thing- drafts are completely different (adults or babies).

If you have a way to keep the wind from going up and under the droppings area, that will serve a lot better purpose in the long run- or you can modify it to close it off for the cold weather - do a piece of plywood , put a thin rubber mat (1/4") from a farm supply store over it (keeps the poop smell from soaking into the plywood), and sprinkle it with some Sweet PDZ or other ammonia neutralizer, and just scoop it up regularly.

If it gets very hot there -- where any air turns out to be good air in the summer -- you could make the solid floor removable--- anyhow.