Size for brooder?

[nfwc1964]

We ordered 10 baby chicks. What size brooder would be appropriate?
Also, seems alot of pros & cons regarding pine shavings & paper towels for day old chicks.
We're going to go to TSC for our supplies. Babies should be shipped out on July 9,2012.
Just afraid going to forget something important regarding supplies
Any help *greatly* appreciated - never done this before.

Nancy

 

[AlienChick]

A large cardboard box will suffice till they outgrow it.
Just use whatever you have on hand.
Rubbermaid tubs are good.
I use a kiddie pool filled with TSC pine shavings.
For the first day I cover the shavings with paper towels because I want to inspect their poop to make sure all is well.
Remember that no matter what you use for a brooder, there will be quite a bit of space taken up by food/waterer.

Congrats on your upcoming chicks!

 

[chicken6465]

Also make sure they have enough room to get away from the heat if needed. And one more suggestion I have been raising chickens for a long time and the healthiest chicks are the ones who are able to get on the ground and eat some dirt and plant matter dont be afraid, the hen who hatches her own has her babies on the ground as soon as they are dry..

 

[Fred's Hens]

For me, the bigger the brooder the better. I've been using my 5x8 utility trailer the last few years. Last time, I just used the stall in the barn. Days were in the 70's (remember when? LOL) and the nights were in the 50's and I just hung the lamp, with a zip tie, but really only ran it at night, mostly.

In this heat, I wouldn't use a lamp at all. Hasn't gotten cool enough, day or night, to be concerned. Your local weather may be different.

Big!!! At 3-4 weeks, the chicks are rambunctious and crazy active. They can fly up 2 feet with ease. Enjoy the brooding. I always do.

 

[Jakoda]

I bought this cage from wayfair.com. Got a good deal on it because it was missing the clamps to hold the top to the bottom.
I had 9 chicks (standard size) in it for one month, they could have gone longer but were ready to go outside. I put shavings in the bottom and covered with paper towels for the first 3 days. I also used a brinsea eco glow heat source vs a heat lamp. I was very happy how things turned out, but yep bigger is better!
This cage was I believe 48" long by 26 wide, by 24/26 high..



Iit
http://www.petsbycsn.com/AandE-Cage-Co.-Rabbit-Cage-RB-Blue-AEC1363.html

 

[RonC]

As large an area as you can afford to let them have. The small pools are good but you will have to put some sides on it or they will escape after about a week. I don't like the Rubbermaid tubs, they are too small. It's too difficult to give them a temperature variation in the brooder. You just need one area that is about 95 degrees like the ecoglo in the above picture or a heat lamp. The rest of the brooder can be room temperature. Lower the temp about 5-7 degrees per week till at room temperature. The reason is that is how they regulate their body temperature by moving to the heat to warm up and away to cool down.

Doesn't hurt to have some savachick or pediolyte handy. Some give probiotics to their little ones, some give them a little plain yogurt instead to help their digestive system. Starter feed, feeder and waterer are must haves. Might want to get something to put under the feeder and water to elevate them so they don't get as much bedding and droppings in them.

Mine were raised on pine shavings and never had a problem. They do peck at the shavings and will inevitably eat some. They will peck at everything though, droppings included.

 

[lcammack]

I went to home depot and got a 4'x8' sheet of OSB (only $7) and a 8' stick of 2"x2" (only$1.50). I had them cut it for me (no mess at home) into 4, 4'x2' sections and cut the 2"x2" stick into 4 even pieces and screwed the box together. We have it in our shop so we just have it on a concrete floor, we just make sure they have a sufficient amount of bedding. You could also set it on top of a tarp or something similar if worried about the floor underneath. It makes a great 4'x4' brooder. Right now we have 35 chicks in it and they are more then comfortable and have plenty of room to move away from the light. This actually turned out to be sooo much cheaper than buying a wading pool or Rubbermaid.

Edit: we do know that 35 won't fit for very long, but we have a brooder right next to it that we made the same way only we used 2 sheets of OSB to make it 4'x8'.

 

[mattblackburn]

the guy with the 4x4x2 box above is probably pretty close. i made mine 8 foot long by 23 inch high by 23 inch deep with a bottom and a lid. Its very nice and i will split it in half but it is too big as a single brooder. i have a webcam at:

http://mattblackburn.net

and no matter how i point it i can never cover the whole box. and quite often the chicks go off camera lol

4 foot long byt 2 foot high by 2 foot deep would be nice if you ask me.

 

[ONSTAD1]

Im brooding mine right in the 4x4 coop...I have 5 chicks.

 

[fiddlebanshee]

I hope you secured that heatlamp with something more than only the clamp. These clamps have a nasty habit of failing and the lamp falling and causing a fire. At the very least, secure it with some zipties so that it cannot slide or fall down on the shavings.

but i'm paranoid like that.