Night time temps/thunderstorms/flu ??

[nfwc1964]

All subtopics my husband has questions about
Night time temps: chicks were born 7/9/12 and all but one seem fully feathered. Living in southern New Hampshire what night temp can these chicks handle?

Thunderstorms: I am ready to move chicks out to their coop but husband is worried since today & tomorrow suppose to have severe thunderstorms. He wants to wait after the storms pass because the chicks will be out in the coop & haven't experienced thunderstorms & in a strange new place ... he doesn't want the to be too scared :}

Lastly, he is concerned about the flu:
can chickens catch the Flu from humans? If they can he wants us to get Flu shots this year.

thanks for any comments & info,
Nancy (wife of the worrying chick daddy)

 

[ChickenCanoe]

How many and what breeds?

Tell him to quit worrying and get them out of the house.
At 6 weeks they can easily handle 65 at night. Most people keep them too warm. The cooler they have it the better they'll feather out for winter.
They'll have to get used to thunder sooner or later.
Don't worry about the flu.
Give them a dry coop with good ventilation, constant clean water and good nutrition and that's half the battle.

 

[BuffOrpington88]

1. As long as they have most of their adult feathers in, they can handle the low 60's.
2. It would be a good idea to wait. The thunderstorms will stress them even more.
3. Nope! No worries.

The first night they might all huddle in the corner peeping and looking really scared, it's really hard to leave them out there, but after a couple minutes they fall asleep. Also, transition them to life outside in stages. First free range them for about 30 minutes with the option of going in the coop. The next day, leave them in for the morning. Finally, you can leave them for the whole day, and the next day they can go out at night. They will probably not use the roost for a few days, but then they'll figure it out.

Good luck!

 

[nfwc1964]

Thanks for all the replies. Husband has decided to move brooder outside inside the chicken run. Then bring them inside again before the thunderstorms hit. We have the temp reader set up in coop already - reading 78F with the coop windows open.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Your question was what can they handle. They are yours and you can do whatever you want, but you would obviously be surprised at what they can handle. Usually in the US, the daytime highs are more of a risk than the night-time lows once they feather out. Where you are, the daytime highs are not much of a risk. I'd love something nice as 78 as a high. My chickens and I enjoy it here when the highs are only in the mid 90's.

Last fall I moved my 5 week old chicks form the brooder (which was in the coop. The brooder was heated, not the coop) to a grow-out coop that was not heated. The overnight lows were in the mid 40's Fahrenheit. When they were 5-1/2 weeks old, the over-night low dropped into the mid 20's. They were fine. They could handle it. A key is that they have good ventilation year around but in cold weather they don't need breezes blowing directly on them. In the warm summer months, a light breeze is welcome. Something about them wearing a down coat year round.

 

[ll]

I vote wait until after the storms = it's just one more day. Good luck to them!

 

[bellanonna]

I agree with the comments about the hotter weather being more of a detriment than the cooler weather. My poor girls are panting late in the afternoon even with mister and fan. They are almost feathered out but are looking forward to cooler weather.

 

[Grumpy old man]

Please these are not babies , throw them outside and close the door , how will they handle cold weather and rain if they are not exposed to it ? Stop coddling them and allow them to grow , chickens are not yuppies and they do not need mommie and daddy to protect them !

 

[mstricer]

Please these are not babies , throw them outside and close the door , how will they handle cold weather and rain if they are not exposed to it ? Stop coddling them and allow them to grow , chickens are not yuppies and they do not need mommie and daddy to protect them !

X2 . Hens will take their chicks out, by day 3. Outside free ranging. Mine had hers out in rain, wind and temps in the 60's and all lived.

 

[Grumpy old man]

folks lets please get a grip on reality , chicks and chickens are a lot hardier than you might think , they are not babies and far from being incapable of handling the weather without you coddling them , my birds are currently standing in the pasture in a driving rain and show no ill effects ! they have more than enough secure places to hide yet they seem content to weather the small storm passing thru our area , if they need a place to get out of the rain they have it ,It seems they like the rain and chickens have survived worse conditions than you are describing . PLEASE LET THEM BE CHICKENS AND NOT PETS !