Raising chicks outside

[Rkdarr]

I'm so glad I found this site! I apologize if this has been asked already. I have 2 ducklings and getting a couple chicks today as well. It is to be very cold this week (night time lows of about 8°). The ducks are inside right now but when we get the chicks I wanted to put them outside in an unheated shed. I will have a heat lamp on them 24/7 until they are old enough to keep themselves warm. Is this okay to do at a young age? Or should I keep them inside longer? (Due to dust and noise, I would prefer them to be outside but dont want them to freeze). Thanks!

 

[Wezdin]

They should have access to a 95 degree spot to stay healthy, how old will the chicks be when you get them?

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

I keep mine inside until fully feathered.

 

[Rkdarr]

They will only be about 1 week old. I will keep them inside a sterlite tub with a heat lamp on them. They will remain in the tub until they are big enough to be put into the coop.

 

[aart]

I'm so glad I found this site! I apologize if this has been asked already. I have 2 ducklings and getting a couple chicks today as well. It is to be very cold this week (night time lows of about 8°). The ducks are inside right now but when we get the chicks I wanted to put them outside in an unheated shed. I will have a heat lamp on them 24/7 until they are old enough to keep themselves warm. Is this okay to do at a young age? Or should I keep them inside longer? (Due to dust and noise, I would prefer them to be outside but dont want them to freeze). Thanks!

Welcome to BYC!

What does your coop look like.....do yo have other bird living there already?

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[Shamo Hybrid]

They should have access to a 95 degree spot to stay healthy, how old will the chicks be when you get them?

95 is way too hot IMO. I would set it at a toasty 85 and slowly drop down a few degrees every other day and wean them off from the heat source. I kicked my chickens out at about 3 weeks and they did fine, granted it doesn't get too cold here but this was also during the colder winter months back in November-December.

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

They will be fine is you have a good brooder. Make sure it isn't drafty, and maybe cover it up a bit to keep the warm air in. What do you use?

 

[aart]

Here's my notes on chick heat, hope something in there might help:

They need to be pretty warm(~85-90F on the brooder floor right under the lamp and 10-20 degrees cooler at the other end of brooder) for the first day or two, especially if they have been shipped, until they get to eating, drinking and moving around well. But after that it's best to keep them as cool as possible for optimal feather growth and quicker acclimation to outside temps. A lot of chick illnesses are attributed to too warm of a brooder. I do think it's a good idea to use a thermometer on the floor of the brooder to check the temps, especially when new at brooding, later I still use it but more out of curiosity than need.

The best indicator of heat levels is to watch their behavior:
-If they are huddled/piled up right under the lamp and cheeping very loudly, they are too cold.
-If they are spread out on the absolute edges of the brooder as far from the lamp as possible, panting and/or cheeping very loudly, they are too hot.
-If they sleep around the edge of the lamp calmly just next to each other and spend time running all around the brooder they are juuuust right!

The lamp is best at one end of the brooder with food/water at the other cooler end of the brooder, so they can get away from the heat or be under it as needed. Wattage of 'heat' bulb depends on size of brooder and ambient temperature of room brooder is in. Regular incandescent bulbs can be used, you might not need a 'heat bulb'. If you do use a heat bulb make sure it's specifically for poultry, some heat bulbs for food have teflon coatings that can kill birds. You can get red colored incandescent bulbs at a reptile supply source. A dimmer extension cord is an excellent way to adjust the output of the bulb to change the heat without changing the height of the lamp.


Or you could go with a heat plate, commercially made or DIY: http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/pseudo-brooder-heater-plate

 

[Rkdarr]

Where the chicks would be is in a shed with the back end converted into a coop. It is fenced off from the rest of the shed so the chickens have their own space. It then has 2 openings for them to go out into a run that is fenced in. There is currently 8 full grown laying hens in there. It is a decent size shed that is 90% draft free but is not insulated. After reading everything, I may keep them inside for a couple weeks then move them out when it gets a tad warmer.