Outside and cooling temps.

[RebelsHope]

My chickies are about 5 weeks old now. Almost all feathered out, in fact some are all feathered out. They are getting too crowded in the brooder and I have a small pen outside almost ready, I will finish tomorrow. It would have been done today if I didn't keep forgetting stuff and having to run back to the hardware store

The coop is a converted play house, which will be too small when they are all adults but perfect for now. It has three windows with hardware cloth covering them and a hardware cloth covered door.

The only problem is that we have a cold front going through and tomorrow it will only be about 58 during the night. Should I put the heat lamp in there with them? Should I cover the bottom half of the door with plastic or a piece of wood to keep them warmer?

Or will the fact that they have shaving and there are 25 of them be enough?

Thats for answering yet another newbie question

 

[kstaven]

They should be fine at 5 weeks old and all huddling together at night. Keeping the wind off them is the big thing if they are not fully feathered.

 

[Omeletta]

We have 6 two week old chicks that have been outside since 4 days old. Granted, they are with mama, but they are standard chicks squeezing under a banty mama. Our temps here have been 4 degrees celsius at night, which to you southerners = 39 degrees F . Given that there are 25, they should be plenty warm, especially if the quarters are small. My birds (yes they are weird, but healthy) have been free ranging in the daytime at this fall like temp, when it's been raining! They aren't under mama at that time, and are growing happily and healthily!

I hope it goes well with the move for them, and I hope they grow healthy and Happy where you are at, as well!

 

[silkiechicken]

They should be fine at 5 weeks. Just keep an eye on them and if they start to huddle really bad, only then put a light on them. I dumped mine out at 3 weeks when night temps were in the low 50's this summer. They huddled and slept the older birds which were 8 weeks old at the time.

 

[RebelsHope]

They did well

My door is working great, they can get out of a draft and seem to be happy. I need to fence in a bigger area, I had a small one for them but they keep hopping out of it . . . the little buggers! But not all at once so they stay close to the coop. I bigger fenced in area will be tomorrow's project.

 

[Omeletta]

Glad it's working for ya, Rebel!