New to Chickens: Brooder Maintenance

[Spartan22]

May I add on brooding, since it’s in your basement. How long are you keeping them in there? As someone mentioned they create a lot of dusts. Learning from my first time I only keep the chicks in my laundry room -basement for 2-3 days, a week the most, then move the brooder to the garage (non heated) but monitor the temp in the brooder until 6-10 wks depends on the weather and the feathering to the coop w/o heat source.

Going back to brooder cleaning, I remove droppings every morning (disposable gloves makes wonder, I keep full boxes everywhere including the coop) or top the shavings to cover the poop when I give them clean water and feed, to keep them dry and clean all the time. Then thoroughly clean within 1-2 wks depends on how big your brooder or how many chicks your brooding. On my set up I always add extra clean room to give them more place to roam/explore to dust bathe and play but always have the heated one for sleeping.

 

[Steam Powered Chicken]

That's great you are looking at someone building a coop for you. When you make a decision and get your coop ready, we would love to see it.

You can put dirt in the brooder for them now or even a small tub of play sand for the time being since you have snow on the ground. For interest, finely chop about 2 teaspoons of kale or (don't know what they are called!lol) those little seedy things off Broccoli and toss that in the sand, they love to dig and find "stuff" in the sand/soil.
I always give my chicks chick grit first thing. They do get a small container of sifted dirt from the chicken run, along with "fresh dirt", a plug of sod/plant and ash mixed together. Even if I have them inside for a few days, they get a pan of dirt. When they are outside in the grow out pen, the container goes with them, I may transition to a large dishpan as they grow to accommodate them. I do let them in their run too, but spring is fairly cool here, so a lot of times I have their pen door shut so they are protected from wind, the tub of dirt keeps them busy if they are closed up. Refresh/refill as needed.

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Thanks!!! I've been mixing in chick grit with their feed and made them a tiny tub mixed with garden soil and sand, and keep it in a plastic pencil case for them to use as a dust bath. I've put it in once, they freaked out and avoided it like it was a pit into the upside down. After a few hours they mobbed it, and began to eat the dirt, scratch a little... but yeah mostly went to town eating dirt? I took it out, and plan to put it back in later for another go at it. I also have a tiny ball with a bell hanging, that I've put a little parsley and celery in for them to peck at. Eventually (when I can see the ground again, dumb snow!) I'll dig up some dirt and veg from the ground out here for them. I appreciate the tips!!!!

 

[Steam Powered Chicken]

May I add on brooding, since it’s in your basement. How long are you keeping them in there? As someone mentioned they create a lot of dusts. Learning from my first time I only keep the chicks in my laundry room -basement for 2-3 days, a week the most, then move the brooder to the garage (non heated) but monitor the temp in the brooder until 6-10 wks depends on the weather and the feathering to the coop w/o heat source.

Going back to brooder cleaning, I remove droppings every morning (disposable gloves makes wonder, I keep full boxes everywhere including the coop) or top the shavings to cover the poop when I give them clean water and feed, to keep them dry and clean all the time. Then thoroughly clean within 1-2 wks depends on how big your brooder or how many chicks your brooding. On my set up I always add extra clean room to give them more place to roam/explore to dust bathe and play but always have the heated one for sleeping.

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Awwww, your little feathered babies are so cute and happy looking!!!!
We've got eight little ladies over here. With it being so cold, and the basement being unfinished, I feel safer with them there until the weather turns. I know it means extra cleaning outside the brooder, but I'm ok with it in exchange for the peace of mind that they're ok. I think I'll start doing some poop scooping like you suggest!

 

[WYChickMom]

Good idea to raise the food/water with bricks, chicks can get water filled with shavings quickly.

You have a nice setup. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with wiping the walls down with your vinegar solution to help keep dust down - you will find that chicks are dusty! They will begin shedding that fluff and there's little keratin sheaths that come off too - that fluff and keratin sticks to everything, then adding dust from feed/bedding you will have a layer of oily dust to deal with, not only in the brooder but in the room you are keeping them in. (oily, because chickens have an oil gland, if you didn't know, there's a little bump toward the end of their tail (preening gland), they wipe their beak across that pick up a drop of oil, then preen their fluff/feathers)

All that said, I would just clean up the poopy shavings and add new. If they get really stinky, then change out the whole thing. If I have chicks in the house, I normally only have them inside for a week, then they go outside to the grow out pen/housing. They do get heat (mama heating pad set-up), but they get exposed to dirt, adult poop, everything else very early in life.

Each of us have our own ideas about coops, but to be honest, if you can build/convert a shed or building, that would be the way to go, imho. Pre-fab coop are notoriously unsatifactory (read the forums, plenty of frustrated, unhappy people). The construction and materials are usually lacking and space is non-existent. Most end up adding on or building something themselves.
A building or shed allows you to customize how you want, plus you have room to walk and work in there when you need to. You can generally have more chickens too

You are on a new adventure! I hope all goes well for you. Such cute chicks you have!

Thank you! This is all so informative! I am going to love being a chick mom! I am so grateful for this site and these forums!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Clean out the chips "whenever it needs it". It doesn't have to be spotless, but you don't want them wallowing in filth either, count on every few days.

Depending on what they step in, you might have to clean your feeders/waterers many times daily for a few weeks. Chicks have poor table manners.

Agree with all this - there's no precise answer because everyone's set ups are different and their chicks behave differently.

With my first batch of chicks (brooded in a bathroom) I was cleaning every 3 days or so and then towards the 5 week mark it was daily, because they were making such a mess everywhere, knocking the waterer over and throwing food around. They wanted to move OUT and I was glad to oblige!

With my second batch of chicks (brooded outside in the run) I never cleaned the brooder. I simply dragged it over a few feet each time I needed it "cleaned." Waterer/feeder still required regular attention, I was dumping wood shavings out of the waterer multiple times a day.