Taking care of 50 chickens

[chickenmustach5]

I just bought 50 chicks and i need to know how much food to feed them during the summer for 8 weeks and do you need any special lights for them does it need a top on top of the coop and if so can u use a tarp? Is this hard to do or is it easy? please help me

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

You don't want a heat lamp under a tarp- been there done that and when it rained the bulb exploded.

 

[lbrtyldy]

How old are the chicks? Why do you need to know how much feed for 8 weeks in the summer?

 

[Quyen Le]

Summer or winter? If they are over 8 weeks old, they don't need heat lamp. I put my 6 week old chicks outside with no heat lamp, they will huddle together to keep themselves warm. Tarp is OK if you know how.

 

[barnaclebob]

Did you really buy 50 chicks without knowing how to take care of them? Or did you order them for delivery in the spring/summer? This is a weird question to ask.

 

[Judy]

If this is a serious question, you need to do some serious reading in our learning center. Buy feed in 50 lb. bags and buy more when needed.

 

[ducks4you]

I had over 50 birds this summer, what with incubating eggs, keeping layers, and growing roosters--we eat the young roosters. Pretty weird, starting with 50 birds. I started with just one, about 6 years ago. Then, I bought a clutch of 6, kept one hen, sold her 5 brothers at auction. THEN, I bought 10, through a local farm supply store's "chick days." Free roosters and an incubator--you fill in the rest.
You're in the deep end, my friend.
I was feeding 50 pounds a week this summer. Free ranging works for some people in the summer, but never in the winter. Free ranging also puts your birds up to local predators, and, if they lay, you may not know where it is until the eggs starts to rot, bc they'll lay EVERYWHERE. Next thing you're gonna tell us is that you don't own a coop. I don't either--STILL haven't built one, BUT I have 60 ft. of dog chain-link fencing and summer quarters AND 5 shelters I've built (summer only) AND I own a barn with a winter quarters stall.
Good luck, you're gonna need it.