puppy whelping box for chick brooder?

[txnative]

I am planning to order chicks soon for the very first time. I have a coop for when they're bigger, and have been doing a lot of reading about their first few weeks. I have a corrugated plastic whelping box (breederbase.com) that I was thinking about using for the chicks. I would put lots of shavings down to give them the traction, so that they wouldn't ever really touch the plastic, which could be too slick for them. Your thoughts, please?

Thanks,

Margaret

 

[DelcoChix]

Any type of safe enclosure will work--I've used a whelping box also, but it's homemade from plywood and has been perfect. Mine measures 4'x4'x2'h and I screwed in a crossbar that I hang the heatlamp and now feeder from.
You want it to have higher sides as the little buggers grow up quickly and will hop/leap/try to fly out--and be sure to rig up some sort of cover to keep them safe from aerial attacks! (like them flying out or cats, dogs, etc...
Also, check some of the forums for using sand rather than shavings--I switched over this year and really like it. It would offer a lot more traction on a slippery surface than shavings would and you can easily rig up a scoop to clean it with. I bought a jumbo cat litter scoop from Meijer for $3.60 and tied a small piece of scrap screen to it with wire--then sift the sand every 2-3 days and it works great. I have 21 chicks that are almost 6 weeks old, ended up putting an addition on the box but they're growing up waay too fast--will need to relocate them soon.
Good luck and enjoy the fun!

 

[txnative]

Thanks! I've been reading about sand and it definitely sounds like a better option. The box I'm thinking about using is pretty tall (I foster Labradors for a rescue), so I think that part will be okay.