Spring or Fall? Pros and cons fro raising babies.

[jermoatc]

Do any of you chicken sages have an opinion on whether it is better to start new chicks in the Fall or Spring and why?

 

[jermoatc]

Im wondering if there is any advantage to getting chicks in October vs February vs April? Any experience or opinion out there?

 

[jermoatc]

bumping to top of thread

 

[gimmie birdies]

I have hatched chicks out at diff. times of the year. the advantage to hatching in the fall, is they will grow in the winter, ( most hens take a break in winter) and have more months to lay before next winter.

 

[jermoatc]

Good point. anybody else have experiences starting in the fall or winter? What do you think is the ideal month to start?

 

[happybooker1]

My very first batch of chicks were hatched aroudn Oct. 21. They went' outside in their coop right before Xmas but I live close to Houston Texas so we weren't down to really cold temp's yet. (Those come in Jan/Feb usually). It was ranging around 40's some nights but they were fine in the enclosed coop. They'd come out during the day.

Haven't had any start laying yet but they probably will before the end of March. Theoretically I should get eggs until NEXT Nov/Dec or even later depending on Texas weather.

I just got some baby chicks from TSC a week ago. It will probably be the end of summer before they start laying. Perhaps a bit sooner because of the warm summer weather but I sure won't be getting 8 months of laying out of them!

If I lived in a colder climate where I HAD to protect the chickens from freezing winter temps, no way I'd get chickens in the fall. That's just me though. The less hassle the better. LOL!

 

[gimmie birdies]

I live in the cold,

I put heat lamps on babies.