Raising chicks in the house?

[chestypuller]

maybe im to dirty to notice it just yet.

 

[rlhagan56]

LOL. I just put the large horse trough in the garage with the large heat lamp and a cover for the 3 week olds, the dust and feather/shavings were getting ridiculous. Besides, my last four (yes they are addicitve) are smaller so I wanted to seperate them for awhile. I put the 4 smaller ones in a large vinyl dog crate half with another light and they seem happier. These chicks are so QUIET compared to the others in the garage. Now I know what you all mean by dust. I had no problems with smell. It is cold out and our coop we are working on is stuck in the snow for awhile. The chicks in the garage seem fine, but I wondered if I should worry about cold, and how soon could they go out to the coop if I use extension cords for the heat lamp?

 

[yinzerchick]

In the house? Yes, it can be done. But I'll never do it again, along with a lot of others on here.

x2!
If you decide to anyway, don't put any sod (a shovel full of grass with dirt) in the brooder for them. Yes, they will love it, but the dirt and dust that will fly is unbearable! I was shocked at how much dust 25 little chicks made. They're weren't too bad untill they get to about 3-4 weeks. If I recall correctly, that's when the dust and smell became a lot more pronounced, and it just kept getting worse. Never again.

 

[theoldchick]

Yes, you can. But the dander and smell may run off the kids, the spouse, and the family dog.

The dander will clog your ventilation fan in the bathroom, so clean it every other day. Open the bathroom window a crack to keep the air circulating, and keep tape the toilet lid closed. Ain't nothing worse than coming home and finding dead chicks in the toilet.

Raising chicks in the house requires A LOT of work. I avoid any kind of shavings as the dust just adds to the dander. I like to use paper towels at first just so the chicks can get a grip. At a week or so I'll change over to newspaper. And plan to change out paper twice to three x a day to keep the odor down.

Remember, more chicks mean more work. At a couple of weeks they'll start roosting on surfaces and you'll find poop in places you didn't know your bathroom had. Despite all the hard work, I'll will raise chicks in the bathroom if weather will not permit otherwise. However, I plan to get them outside as soon as possible.

Personally, I usually save the bathroom for hospital duties, because the area is usually easily cleaned. However, if your bathroom floor is carpeted, I advise selecting another area for raising chicks.

 

[MommaK6]

Mine are in our laundry room......at a week old they don't smell, have no dust and are wonderful background noise with their cheeps. Sounds like I will need to figure out Plan B RIGHT NOW.

 

[aoxa]

I have my first brood of 11 chicks indoors, and as soon as I move to a new location (one month away!!) I will build them a separate broody/grow out coop. I can't stand the dust! It's everywhere!! They also kick the shavings out of the playpen I am using.. It's really a daily chore to vacuum. As soon as they are feathered, I am evicting them.

ETA: They are in a mud room, but if you visit them, you seem to carry shavings with you all over Oh and they don't smell. I smell shavings, but not poop. It's only the dust and clean-up that is driving me crazy.

 

[KimKimWilliamso]

Hahaha, I find it so funny that so many people are suggesting the dust/dander from a few little chicks is unbearable, and a reason NOT to have the chicks in the house. LOL
Its just that here, the chicks dander is the least of the worries, because I have three Large Parrots living IN MY HOUSE, LOLa nd the dander they create is out of this world in comparison to the dander some chicks can create. But in the parrot world, that dander is easily managed by putting an air purifier near the cages, and cleaning the cages frequently, and bathing the parrots freguently. So it isnt even noticeable here.

So, needless to say, my Tupperware Tote/Bin is located in my laundry/boot room with a 100W Light Bulb, sitting at a nice 85 degrees for my 1 and a half week-2 week old chicks. We are using Pine shavings, and whlie the hot shavings do emit an odor, I havent had any trouble with a BAD smell per say, LOL I could see the chick dander being a problem for the chicks in such a closed in area, so I am cleaning thier tote twice a day. Gives them clean homes, and allows for extra handling, hopefully taming them, LOL

 

[aoxa]

Hahaha, I find it so funny that so many people are suggesting the dust/dander from a few little chicks is unbearable, and a reason NOT to have the chicks in the house.  LOL
Its just that here, the chicks dander is the least of the worries, because I have three Large Parrots living IN MY HOUSE, LOLa nd the dander they create is out of this world in comparison to the dander some chicks can create.  But in the parrot world, that dander is easily managed by putting an air purifier near the cages, and cleaning the cages frequently, and bathing the parrots freguently.  So it isnt even noticeable here.

So, needless to say, my Tupperware Tote/Bin is located in my laundry/boot room with a 100W Light Bulb, sitting at a nice 85 degrees for my 1 and a half week-2 week old chicks.  We are using Pine shavings, and whlie the hot shavings do emit an odor, I havent had any trouble with a BAD smell per say, LOL  I could see the chick dander being a problem for the chicks in such a closed in area, so I am cleaning thier tote twice a day.  Gives them clean homes, and allows for extra handling, hopefully taming them, LOL

I didn't suggest chick dander as to being an issue, it's the shavings that are the issue. The dust created by them is what gets me. :/

Why would you clean their tote twice a day? That doesn't seem necessary.. Cleaning their food/water from shavings is necessary, but not changing their litter.

 

[KimKimWilliamso]

Im worried that thier tote has no air circulation, which means the dander could affect them negatively, respiratory wise. This is true of parrots....if left in thier dander filled cages without proper air filtration and cleaning they can develop awful respiratory diseases. I cant imagine it would be any different for the chicks. So, I figure a bout of fresh air outside the tote a couple times a day, plus new bedding and clean dishes, walls etc will at least minimize that. Might be over cautious, but in my experience with parrots, you can never be too careful. So I will expand that to my chicken care too, LOL

 

[horseshowmomnv]

Interesting to see everyone and their opinions... to each their own. I agree the dander was not bad it was the layers of dust. I would have to dust my dining room table at least 4 times a day. The chicks were in another room. We used mostly sand. Well, easily enough they transitioned into the garage well and that issue is now behind us. Obviously the more chicks you have the more dust. We had 26 chicks, maybe under five could be manageable.
Just heads up for those who are thinking of putting a large quantity in the house, maybe have a plan b if the dust gets tooo much. It got unbearable at 3 weeks.
Well, now time to go stand with the farrier, horse needs new shoes!