One month chicks going outside......what to do with the 10 day old chicks?

[tari]

Hi All Experienced Chicken People,
My 11 four-week old chicks are feathered and flying around the homemade brooder box. They're friendly and happy and seemingly ready to have more space. Temps here are 70-40 F and I have a large (11x11') coop all ready for them with roosts. I've integrated the 6 one-week old chicks with the older chicks and they are good with each other. The younger 6 are just starting to get some little feathers but it seems they're too young to go to the coop. Any advice on keeping them indoors for a couple more weeks and then re-integrating them? I'm tempted to put them in the coop ....with the current breeder box with an opening to go in and out to stay integrated with the flock. I'll move the two heat sources into the coop also so they could all seek warmth if needed.
Thanks

 

[Duck_life]

i had moved my ducklings into a coop at 2 weeks old.. ducks can stand lower temps though mine had handled below 30 degrees f. chicks are different and can only handle so much cold... also i had my 4 ducks together and a clutch to lay in. i advise waiting 6 weeks as that is the normal wait. good luck!

 

[tari]

i had moved my ducklings into a coop at 2 weeks old.. ducks can stand lower temps though mine had handled below 30 degrees f. chicks are different and can only handle so much cold... also i had my 4 ducks together and a clutch to lay in. i advise waiting 6 weeks as that is the normal wait. good luck!

Thanks Duck_life

 

[tari]

i had moved my ducklings into a coop at 2 weeks old.. ducks can stand lower temps though mine had handled below 30 degrees f. chicks are different and can only handle so much cold... also i had my 4 ducks together and a clutch to lay in. i advise waiting 6 weeks as that is the normal wait. good luck!

Ha Ha...I just saw that I wrote "My 11 month old chicks...." Don't know how that happened... My older chicks are 4 weeks old! Sorry!

 

[Ra_]

My last five hatches, I only kept them in the brooder for one week but it's pretty hot here in Florida. I move them out to the goat house and put them in a rabbit cage. I put a heating pad in there at night for the first week and cover it with washcloths. Birds seem very comfortable.
Yesterday my latest clutch of 20 chicks were 12 days old and I propped open the cage door and let them come out and mix with the 5 week old clutch. They get chased around a little bit at times but nobody gets hurt. The structure is 8'x16' and there are 5 very high, long perches that criss-cross each other. I'm always amazed at how 3 week old chicks are able to fly around up on those perches.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My brooder is in the coop, they go there straight from the incubator or post office even if the outside temperatures are below freezing. If you can safely put a heat source out there they could have already been out there.

People use heat plates, heating pads, heat lamps, emitters, and other heat sources. They can all work if set up properly. One issue with heating outside is the temperature swings. I've had temperatures go from below freezing to the mid 70's F in 36 hours. Too much heat is as dangerous to chicks as not enough so you have to be careful not to overheat them. I use a heat lamp in a big brooder. In cold temperatures they roam all over but have a warm place to go to so they can warm up when they need to. In warm temperatures pretty much hang out in the far end where it is cooler. I don't have experience with the other heating methods but people use them in below freezing temps too.

I consider the temperature swings the most significant thing to deal with in brooding them outside. I do think raising them in the coop so they grow up with the flock helps a lot with integration.

Good luck!

 

[chkva]

My chicks have been outside since day 1 because we are having a very hot spring, it's 80+ during the day and 68+ at night. My chicks are really enjoying being outside with my hens. I did the see but don't touch method for a few weeks then I let the chicks out with the hens and they've been perfectly fine. I think brooding outside is so much easier than inside and it gets them used to the ground they'll be living on.

Chickens are quite hardy and can handle more than people say. They're amazing creatures.

 

[tari]

My last five hatches, I only kept them in the brooder for one week but it's pretty hot here in Florida. I move them out to the goat house and put them in a rabbit cage. I put a heating pad in there at night for the first week and cover it with washcloths. Birds seem very comfortable.
Yesterday my latest clutch of 20 chicks were 12 days old and I propped open the cage door and let them come out and mix with the 5 week old clutch. They get chased around a little bit at times but nobody gets hurt. The structure is 8'x16' and there are 5 very high, long perches that criss-cross each other. I'm always amazed at how 3 week old chicks are able to fly around up on those perches.

Thanks Ra, Your girls sound a lot like mine. They co-mingle well. I'll wait for a couple of days until the weather gets a little warmer and put them in the coop with heat and all the amenities.

 

[tari]

My brooder is in the coop, they go there straight from the incubator or post office even if the outside temperatures are below freezing. If you can safely put a heat source out there they could have already been out there.

People use heat plates, heating pads, heat lamps, emitters, and other heat sources. They can all work if set up properly. One issue with heating outside is the temperature swings. I've had temperatures go from below freezing to the mid 70's F in 36 hours. Too much heat is as dangerous to chicks as not enough so you have to be careful not to overheat them. I use a heat lamp in a big brooder. In cold temperatures they roam all over but have a warm place to go to so they can warm up when they need to. In warm temperatures pretty much hang out in the far end where it is cooler. I don't have experience with the other heating methods but people use them in below freezing temps too.

I consider the temperature swings the most significant thing to deal with in brooding them outside. I do think raising them in the coop so they grow up with the flock helps a lot with integration.

Good luck!

Thanks, Ridgerunner, our temperature changes in Vermont are severe also. I think the trick is to give them comfort choices and keep an eye on them. I like the common sense approach....

 

[Mrs. K]

If they are integrated, I would go ahead and move them. Especially if you can add a heat source. Chicks with mamma - go out in dang cold weather, and then have a warm up spell under mamma.

Take the brooder out there, and they will be fine. Chicks are healthier raised outside. Separating chickens just causes problems.

Mrs K