I realized today that I was going to have to bite the bullet and put the baby chicks out in the greenhouse. It is only going to get colder and they might as well start getting used to it now. Of course the night I put them out the temp is heading down towards 10 degrees F. But the last time I checked, it was 40+ in the greenhouse. That was with the door open, etc. I'm hoping that the heat lamp shoves it up a bit more now that there are 47 chickens in there.
We finished the covered cage area for the almost 5 week old chicks. They had been divided up between two of those HUGE storage bins on the sunporch but were looking so cramped. They were constantly knocking over their water and it was always damp in there so I decided to not wait til this weekend to move them.
Already living in the greenhouse are 23 chickens that are almost 14 weeks old. I have a nice large coop ready for them but I thought it might be nice to leave them in the greenhouse until Saturday to use their bodyheat to help warm it up a bit more.
Our two chickies that were hatched by a broody hen are running all over outside, it's time to stop babying these hatchery hatched girls. I still feel horrid about it. I'm cold in the house! What do they think of it out there? Everytime I've looked, they aren't huddled up with their feathers all puffed out - they are running around, chirping and exploring their space and getting to know each other again. They have around 3 inches of shavings, a blanket over the door, and a feather pillow outside the door to cover the crack. I put a sheet over the chicken wire to hold in the heat and keep out drafts. I SHOULDN'T BE STRESSING OVER THIS !!!
When Dh comes home, I'll have him go out and top off their feed and make sure things are ok. I'd put a heater out there, but I'm a bit concerned that it would blow the fuse in the middle of the night and there would be no heat.
I HATE winter! Actually, I love winter, I just feel so bad for the animals.
OH YES, now I know why it would have been better to wait until February to get the chicks ordered. It would be cold when they arrive but by the time it they are too big for my brooders, the temps are going up and not down! Hopefully, this won't be another learning experience.
My first experience was over 20 years ago when I 'baked' a batch of baby chicks in a brooder. Dh built a one that would be easy for me to keep an eye on the chicks and the raccoons couldn't raid. Unfortunately, we didn't consider the afternoon sun.
We finished the covered cage area for the almost 5 week old chicks. They had been divided up between two of those HUGE storage bins on the sunporch but were looking so cramped. They were constantly knocking over their water and it was always damp in there so I decided to not wait til this weekend to move them.
Already living in the greenhouse are 23 chickens that are almost 14 weeks old. I have a nice large coop ready for them but I thought it might be nice to leave them in the greenhouse until Saturday to use their bodyheat to help warm it up a bit more.
Our two chickies that were hatched by a broody hen are running all over outside, it's time to stop babying these hatchery hatched girls. I still feel horrid about it. I'm cold in the house! What do they think of it out there? Everytime I've looked, they aren't huddled up with their feathers all puffed out - they are running around, chirping and exploring their space and getting to know each other again. They have around 3 inches of shavings, a blanket over the door, and a feather pillow outside the door to cover the crack. I put a sheet over the chicken wire to hold in the heat and keep out drafts. I SHOULDN'T BE STRESSING OVER THIS !!!
When Dh comes home, I'll have him go out and top off their feed and make sure things are ok. I'd put a heater out there, but I'm a bit concerned that it would blow the fuse in the middle of the night and there would be no heat.
I HATE winter! Actually, I love winter, I just feel so bad for the animals.
OH YES, now I know why it would have been better to wait until February to get the chicks ordered. It would be cold when they arrive but by the time it they are too big for my brooders, the temps are going up and not down! Hopefully, this won't be another learning experience.
My first experience was over 20 years ago when I 'baked' a batch of baby chicks in a brooder. Dh built a one that would be easy for me to keep an eye on the chicks and the raccoons couldn't raid. Unfortunately, we didn't consider the afternoon sun.
