New chicks and power outage

[scooter16]

I have X7 one week old chicks. I lost power, which also means no water as we have a well/pump. I use a Brinsea brooder plate and the room was about 68 degrees. Within one hour they were huddled and chirping loudly. I cannot get the garage door up manually by myself to heat them in my car. I ended up putting them in a pillowcase, under my chin and snuggled them for almost three hours/breathing warmth on them till the power returned. My question: Has anyone used pocket hand warmers,
a battery powered/rechargeable heat pad, or a battery powered coat? Are any of these sustainable ways to keep chicks warm?
Thanks in advance for any input or experiences.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Do you have a gas water heater or a way to use gas to heat water like a gas stove or propane? For 7 chicks a hot water bottle could work well. But be careful you don't expose them to open flame. The gasses could poison them if they breathe them.

Some hatcheries use a heat source when they ship small numbers of chicks in colder weather, something like a hand warmer. So if you have a battery powered heat source and can keep it from getting too hot it should work. You do not want to cook them.

 

[debid]

Shipping heat packs. You can get them for different lengths of time and they are a longer lasting and more gentle heat than hot hands. But yes, these things would work for short term.

 

[McChooky]

I have X7 one week old chicks. I lost power, which also means no water as we have a well/pump. I use a Brinsea brooder plate and the room was about 68 degrees. Within one hour they were huddled and chirping loudly. I cannot get the garage door up manually by myself to heat them in my car. I ended up putting them in a pillowcase, under my chin and snuggled them for almost three hours/breathing warmth on them till the power returned. My question: Has anyone used pocket hand warmers,
a battery powered/rechargeable heat pad, or a battery powered coat? Are any of these sustainable ways to keep chicks warm?
Thanks in advance for any input or experiences.

I'd call a friend with a generator if you have any close by.I hope your chicks are okay!

 

[McChooky]

I have X7 one week old chicks. I lost power, which also means no water as we have a well/pump. I use a Brinsea brooder plate and the room was about 68 degrees. Within one hour they were huddled and chirping loudly. I cannot get the garage door up manually by myself to heat them in my car. I ended up putting them in a pillowcase, under my chin and snuggled them for almost three hours/breathing warmth on them till the power returned. My question: Has anyone used pocket hand warmers,
a battery powered/rechargeable heat pad, or a battery powered coat? Are any of these sustainable ways to keep chicks warm?
Thanks in advance for any input or experiences.

Any of the items you listed above provide heat.Any is better than none.Once they get cold they can suffer from metabolic changes and won't be able to process their food.They could die from dehydration once that sets in.The battery powered coat sounds like a good idea in an emergency or maybe the battery powered heat pad.Don't give them any cold water

 

[scooter16]

I'd call a friend with a generator if you have any close by.I hope your chicks are okay!

We have a gas run generator for long outages, hurricanes etc. My hubby was gone overnight so, reason why I couldn't get garage door up on my own and I have never used the grill....and have never plugged in the big generator and flipped the switch. Maybe I need to bite the bullet and learn these skills. It was all bad timing.I lost the littlest chick and the rest are fine.

 

[scooter16]

Any of the items you listed above provide heat.Any is better than none.Once they get cold they can suffer from metabolic changes and won't be able to process their food.They could die from dehydration once that sets in.The battery powered coat sounds like a good idea in an emergency or maybe the battery powered heat pad.Don't give them any cold water

I think I'll have some back up pocket warmers here. They last for a bit in storage. We have lost power for up to 3 days here in N.C. during hurricane season. My chicks at almost 2 weeks are now on top of the brooder plate more than under it..Its just that tenuous first week. Thanks.