After a long and at times..heated discussion regarding the baby chicks..I came to the experts to see if I am indeed crazy!
I am having a hard time putting my 5 baby chicks outside for good. They are approx 6-7 weeks old this week..my 2 BO are fully feathered and my RIR are almost fully feathered..I live in maine and the temps at night drop to 30 degrees..
I put them out in their own coop during the day...and they LOVE it! But when my older ladies go to bed and I close them up for the night..I bring in the baby chicks. They sleep well at night and seem to enjoy being back in..the hubbs thinks I am spoiling them and they should be ready to be left out for good...he is afraid of having 5 adult chickens sleeping in our bedroom for the next year because I am not "ready" to let go...
So am I crazy for bringing them back in at night? Are they ok at night outside in their coop with no other heat source? Or should I wait until the outside temps get warmer-should be ok in about 2 weeks...I will admit I do enjoy getting up and seeing how excited they get when they see me coming...and I do enjoy the routine at bedtime..I just don't want them to get cold at night..can you spoil baby chicks too much?
I say go with your instincts and keep them inside. Yes, they probably would be fine outside now, but it sounds like you have a great set up and are enjoying their company. You will know when the time is right, so relax and give yourself the next two weeks before the send off.
I say go with your instincts and keep them inside. Yes, they probably would be fine outside now, but it sounds like you have a great set up and are enjoying their company. You will know when the time is right, so relax and give yourself the next two weeks before the send off.
And, no, you can't spoil chickens too much!
I agree. And better safe than sorry... Give your DH a date they'll be out and that should help too. That way he has a set date to count down to instead of wondering if he has a new set of house chickens.
