older chicks/pullets going outside

[provencherm1]

We live in western Washington. Current daytime highs are in the high 50s or low 60s. Nighttime lows are in 30s or 40s, although we did get down to 28 the other night. We have a covered coop and run. The chicks are about 8-9 weeks old, and do appear to be fully feathered. We could put a 75 or 150 watt red headlamp in the coop if needed. Any thoughts?

 

[chickielips]

I am in the Tacoma area, and put my two 6 week old chicks out in their mini coop with a Snuggle Safe disc at night in case they got chilly, and they are doing fine

 

[Rowsdower]

No problem. My 8 week olds have been outside for 2 weeks in similar temps, without a heat lamp. I do have a few older birds in there for them to snuggle against, but they seem to roost away from them anyway.

 

[Blooie]

Last year I put my chicks out at 5.5 weeks. I put a wireless thermometer in the coop and I added a heat lamp. I kept watching the temp dip down in the coop and as it dropped I kept getting out of bed to run out and check on them. It was down to 20 in the coop, but they were snuggled in a pile near the pop door, totally away from the heat I had so thoughtfully provided. They were fine - I was freezing. The next night it was the same story - cuddled in a pile of feathers and several feet away from the heat lamp, but I only checked on them once. In the morning the heat lamp came out. They didn't need it - it was out there for my peace of mind, not their comfort, and there was no point in risking a coop fire or paying extra for the heat if they weren't using it. That night it snowed.....and we got our last snowfall on June 6th. They thrived. They are still thriving - they are sleek, healthy, and strong.

This year I brooded the new chicks outside in the run. Yep, the run. No heat lamp, just a heating pad. Nightime temps dipped into the upper teens, low 20s every night. These are the strongest chicks ever! Eleven of them are 5.5 weeks old and 4 of them are 4.5 weeks old. They are mingling with the Bigs, going outside for much of the day, and have never had a heat lamp on them - just a cave with a heating pad over it. These little critters are a lot stronger than we give them credit for. I have a new batch of chicks coming today, and they are going straight out to the coop as well. They'll have the same setup - just a cave with a heating pad, and they'll do just as well as this batch has done.

So at 8-9 weeks old, your chicks should be more than ready to start living like chickens outside, even without supplemental heat. Relax - they'll be fine. They might be mad at you for a day or two but they'll get over it.

 

[chickielips]

Yeah, I think we worry too much!! I only had two chicks so no one to snuggle up with, but I'm sure they would have been just fine

 

[vweers]

I was just wondering this. Mine aren't quite that old yet but wanted to see at what point I could put them out there. I still need to clean the coop but too rainy for it to air dry. lol

 

[kellyrc09]

Hi! Brand new to chickens and I wonder about this as well. Day temps are mid to upper 80s and nights are around 65. Are nights too cool for little ones? I have no idea the age of these chicks/pullets. Neck feathers are starting to come in.

My thought was to move the coop to get full afternoon sun, hoping it would retain some heat in the evening.

This isn't the best photo but maybe it will help.

 

[Rowsdower]

How old are they and how many do you have? Will they be in the coop by themselves? How large is it? I'd throw them out if they were mine, but I hate to tell someone else what to do with their chicks. It's hard to tell how old they are from the picture. But they look to be bout 2-3 weeks old. My chicks at that age spend whole days out in the run when it is 60 (and sunny).

 

[kellyrc09]

Age is unknown. My hunch is 3-4 weeks for the larger based on the neck feathers coming in. These three are the only ones I have. The coop run combo is from Tractor Supply - dimensions of the coop itself are about 32' x 24' with nest boxes attached to the back.

I think I'll keep them in until Monday when I return to work - then out they go!

Thanks for the reply!

Maybe these are better pics -

 

[Rowsdower]

Maybe these are better pics -

I think 3 weeks would be a safe guess, at least on the larger ones.