Panicking about my watering setup, picking up chicks in half an hour HALP!

[medusine]

Oh, re: size of cage... I got one of Mypetchicken.com's cardboard panel brooders, hoping that'll be enough to alleviate space issues when they're too big for the cage but too small for the coop! https://www.mypetchicken.com/catalo...aby-Chick-Brooder-Panels-Set-of-10-p1063.aspx

Baby chick tax:

 

[K0k0shka]

For the first week or two, I used this kind of basic waterer elevated on a wooden block, and the water stayed pretty clean:

This one is very easy to clean and refill. After that I switched them to a nipple waterer and they did fine.

 

[K0k0shka]

I got one of Mypetchicken.com's cardboard panel brooders

Much better. Make sure you cover the top though, or they will fly out.

Your babies look adorable!

 

[rosemarythyme]

The only issue is that I have to refill the cups by hand a few times per day, but honestly, I think that even so, it might be easier than the "real" waterer, which as mentioned, will be impossible to clean out or even to dump old water to replace entirely with fresh, unless I disassemble the whole thing by unscrewing the spout from inside the tank. And then whatever water is still in it will come pouring out. Shaking my head at the design on that, are people really meant to just refill without ever cleaning it? Or let it go completely empty before every cleaning?

Yeah that waterer looks like a hassle. For chicks I use the type K0k0shka uses. Yes it still needs to be dumped out daily but super easy to refill. Once they're older (4 weeks in photo below) I switch them entirely to nipples.

Oh, re: size of cage... I got one of Mypetchicken.com's cardboard panel brooders, hoping that'll be enough to alleviate space issues when they're too big for the cage but too small for the coop!

x2 on covering the top, so work on making one in the interim.

Not sure how big those cardboard corrals are, so hopefully it'll be big enough to let you finish brooding this batch. Just for future reference personally I would've just cut up some cardboard and make my own cardboard brooder if I wanted to go that route, or appliance stores often have massive boxes that are an excellent brooder size.

 

[K0k0shka]

Mine were under 2 weeks old when they were able to use the nipple waterer, and at 3 weeks outgrew the large appliance box I had them in, so I moved them to the coop.

 

[medusine]

Nipple waterer sounds like a good upgrade. I'll work on the brooder topper... I'm in Vermont, so don't want to be moving them outside too early. Even in the middle of summer nights can get chilly.