Texas

[Kilsharion]

Good morning everybody!!!
I have a question how many chicks should I have in a brooder as y'all know I have 50 chicks coming on thursday and I'm worried that I should split them up but grandad says they should be fine in one big pen. What should I do and how big an area should I have for them for the first week or two?

I try to plan for at least 1 sq ft per chick. I've seen others go down as far as .5 sq ft per chick. Others up to as much as 2 sq ft per chick.

My grand-uncle used to hatch them out in a big ol' trough and then put panels up around them on the floor with old blankets and stuff around the outside and big, ol' heat lamps over the top. But - then again - my grand-uncle had his own way of doing things. I think a lot of people would be apoplectic hearing some of the stories about him.

But, I have seen people just use card board boxes broken down and made into walls with twist ties holding them together. So long as they are warm, draft free, germ free and given enough space, they should be fine. Be careful with their food and water (what are you planning for that)? And, don't forget about pets you may have that may be more curious than is good for the chicks' health.

 

[Fentressfarmer]

I try to plan for at least 1 sq ft per chick. I've seen others go down as far as .5 sq ft per chick. Others up to as much as 2 sq ft per chick. My grand-uncle used to hatch them out in a big ol' trough and then put panels up around them on the floor with old blankets and stuff around the outside and big, ol' heat lamps over the top. But - then again - my grand-uncle had his own way of doing things. I think a lot of people would be apoplectic hearing some of the stories about him.

But, I have seen people just use card board boxes broken down and made into walls with twist ties holding them together. So long as they are warm, draft free, germ free and given enough space, they should be fine. Be careful with their food and water (what are you planning for that)? And, don't forget about pets you may have that may be more curious than is good for the chicks' health.

Pets aren't going to be a problem we are going to keep them in granddads basement. We've got multiple wateres and feeders and a couple of heat lamps. I'm just worried that if all the chicks are in the same pen they will dog pile and somebody is gonna get squished. Am I just overly worried and need to relax and just see how they do then adapt once they get here? Also I have 5 guinea Kerry's coming with them should I seperate them? This is my first time with chicks and I think I'm just over thinking.

 

[Fentressfarmer]

Keets not Kerry I hate auto spell

 

[Fentressfarmer]

F

Pets aren't going to be a problem we are going to keep them in granddads basement. We've got multiple wateres and feeders and a couple of heat lamps. I'm just worried that if all the chicks are in the same pen they will dog pile and somebody is gonna get squished. Am I just overly worried and need to relax and just see how they do then adapt once they get here? Also I have 5 guinea Kerry's coming with them should I seperate them? This is my first time with chicks and I think I'm just over thinking.

for feed I got 18% chick starter from the feed store

 

[Cockle-Dood]

I try to plan for at least 1 sq ft per chick. I've seen others go down as far as .5 sq ft per chick. Others up to as much as 2 sq ft per chick.

My grand-uncle used to hatch them out in a big ol' trough and then put panels up around them on the floor with old blankets and stuff around the outside and big, ol' heat lamps over the top. But - then again - my grand-uncle had his own way of doing things. I think a lot of people would be apoplectic hearing some of the stories about him.

But, I have seen people just use card board boxes broken down and made into walls with twist ties holding them together. So long as they are warm, draft free, germ free and given enough space, they should be fine. Be careful with their food and water (what are you planning for that)? And, don't forget about pets you may have that may be more curious than is good for the chicks' health.

Kind of an odd question, but that 1 sq ft per chick is that from hatch until they are ready to go outside? 6 weeks (ish)?? I have read so many post and articles on this and am still kinda confused.

So basically what im asking is 1 sq ft/per bird enough room for them to stay in one brooder until they feather enough to go to the coup?

 

[Kilsharion]

Kind of an odd question, but that 1 sq ft per chick is that from hatch until they are ready to go outside? 6 weeks (ish)?? I have read so many post and articles on this and am still kinda confused.

So basically what im asking is 1 sq ft/per bird enough room for them to stay in one brooder until they feather enough to go to the coup?

It's what I do - but, I also put mine in the coop at 4 weeks with heat lamps to moderate the temperature for them. They can come and go as they like (I teach them the ramp, since they don't know how to use it at first), and as they get more comfortable with it, they are up and down it like champs - playing and having fun outside when it's comfortable for them - then back up in the coop when they want to warm up. The last few days, they've stayed up in the coop (my younger ones are going to be five weeks old this weekend) except for about an hour or two in the afternoons. By six weeks, I remove the lamps all together. Of course, when we have our summers - tossing them into the coop without a heat lamp is pretty much not an issue since even our nights stay warmer than the coolest temp they need.

I may not be doing it "right"; but, so far they are all doing wonderfully....so I can't be doing it too wrong.

Then again, there are people here that are much more knowledgeable than I am on the subject. They'll set the record straight if I've made a hash of it.

 

[yinepu]

Good morning everybody!!!
I have a question how many chicks should I have in a brooder as y'all know I have 50 chicks coming on thursday and I'm worried that I should split them up but grandad says they should be fine in one big pen. What should I do and how big an area should I have for them for the first week or two?

I have used everything from fish tanks (10 gallon on up to 55 gallon) to plastic totes and BIG bird cages

The plastic totes are the easiest to keep clean. For 50 chicks i would use the largest tote you can find.. or a stock tank

Pets aren't going to be a problem we are going to keep them in granddads basement. We've got multiple wateres and feeders and a couple of heat lamps. I'm just worried that if all the chicks are in the same pen they will dog pile and somebody is gonna get squished. Am I just overly worried and need to relax and just see how they do then adapt once they get here? Also I have 5 guinea Kerry's coming with them should I seperate them? This is my first time with chicks and I think I'm just over thinking.

They will only pile and squish if they get too cold.. make sure they have plenty of heat on one end of the brooder and then a cooler end so they can move away from it if they get too hot

Kind of an odd question, but that 1 sq ft per chick is that from hatch until they are ready to go outside? 6 weeks (ish)?? I have read so many post and articles on this and am still kinda confused.

So basically what im asking is 1 sq ft/per bird enough room for them to stay in one brooder until they feather enough to go to the coup?

that all depends on breed.. a bantam will need less room fully feathered out that a cornish cross will.

Just pay attention to the chicks.. do they have enough room to move around freely? can they get to their food and water without having to climb across the other chicks to get to it? Is the area protected from drafts? Can they move freely from the hot end of the brooder to the cool end?

If you can answer YES to all of those then they have plenty of room.. if not then they need a bigger area. Just make sure they are not in an area that is TOO big or they may have problems finding their food water and heat source.

 

[Fentressfarmer]

Many thanks!!

 

[Cockle-Dood]

thats perfect, thats what i needed to hear. I did figure i could put them out without lights sooner as summer approches (no elec at or near my coup), but it was the "until-that-point" that i was pulling my hair out over! thank you!

 

[CatKai]

Hatching early! Guess the power out wasn't a big deal last week! Maybe kept them a little warmer than needed.