Too early to go outside, or trust the chicks?

[lysmandor]

Just another first time chick parent post. I've been learning so much from this community in the past few weeks, and finally a post!

I'm brooding my first set of 4 chicks currently (1 silver laced wyandotte, 1 gold laced wyandotte, 1 easter egger and 1 speckled sussex) and I'm wondering (like everyone else!) when it would be appropriate to let them stay out overnight without heat.

Currently they're inside in a spare bedroom without heat at about 54 degrees F at 3 weeks old today - we usually leave the heat upstairs off to conserve energy since we don't really use that space. Before you think I'm too crazy - initially, we had the heat turned up to 70 degrees and they had a radiant heat plate. By the end of their first week, they were doing well and hardly spending any time near the heat plate, so we turned down the house heat to 65 degrees or so, then off completely. A little over a week ago, they started spending no time at all near the heat plate, and even sleeping in a pile in the opposite corner of the brooder, so I started turning the heat off during the day. A day or two later, I took out the heat plate completely - still no reaction from the chicks, peeping softly, sleeping through the night, eating and drinking and playing like champs. They've been off heat completely for almost a week and as far as I can tell doing great!

They have been outside for a few field trips on nicer sunny days (around 55 degrees) and showed no signs of huddling or getting cold. They're mostly feathered, though not completely - heads, butts and a few spots down the middle of their backs are still covered with chick fuzz, though the feathers are coming in fast!

Everything I've read says that they should still need heat at this age, but clearly no one's told my chicks! Would it be crazy to start thinking about moving them outside once the night temperatures are staying over 40-45 degrees? We're in a weird cold snap (it snowed yesterday, and it's dropping below freezing outside tonight), but hopefully in a week or so highs will be 55 or higher and lows above 40. We have a very secure coop and run with hardware cloth buried a foot down, so no worries about predators and such, just the cold.

Thanks in advance for any advice (and for reading my essay!)

 

[DobieLover]

Just another first time chick parent post. I've been learning so much from this community in the past few weeks, and finally a post!

I'm brooding my first set of 4 chicks currently (1 silver laced wyandotte, 1 gold laced wyandotte, 1 easter egger and 1 speckled sussex) and I'm wondering (like everyone else!) when it would be appropriate to let them stay out overnight without heat.

Currently they're inside in a spare bedroom without heat at about 54 degrees F at 3 weeks old today - we usually leave the heat upstairs off to conserve energy since we don't really use that space. Before you think I'm too crazy - initially, we had the heat turned up to 70 degrees and they had a radiant heat plate. By the end of their first week, they were doing well and hardly spending any time near the heat plate, so we turned down the house heat to 65 degrees or so, then off completely. A little over a week ago, they started spending no time at all near the heat plate, and even sleeping in a pile in the opposite corner of the brooder, so I started turning the heat off during the day. A day or two later, I took out the heat plate completely - still no reaction from the chicks, peeping softly, sleeping through the night, eating and drinking and playing like champs. They've been off heat completely for almost a week and as far as I can tell doing great!

They have been outside for a few field trips on nicer sunny days (around 55 degrees) and showed no signs of huddling or getting cold. They're mostly feathered, though not completely - heads, butts and a few spots down the middle of their backs are still covered with chick fuzz, though the feathers are coming in fast!

Everything I've read says that they should still need heat at this age, but clearly no one's told my chicks! Would it be crazy to start thinking about moving them outside once the night temperatures are staying over 40-45 degrees? We're in a weird cold snap (it snowed yesterday, and it's dropping below freezing outside tonight), but hopefully in a week or so highs will be 55 or higher and lows above 40. We have a very secure coop and run with hardware cloth buried a foot down, so no worries about predators and such, just the cold.

Thanks in advance for any advice (and for reading my essay!)

I'd put them out and give them a huddle box.

 

[lysmandor]

I'd put them out and give them a huddle box.

Thanks for the reply! I've seen those mentioned... are they literally a small box to huddle in? Like an upside down box just big enough for them with a door cut out, and extra bedding?

 

[katarobb]

Hello. I'm new to chick raising too and mine went outside (at 5 weeks old) this last weekend. I have four rhode island red hens. They seemed to be doing well but it got a bit windy/cold this evening and when I went out to close them in for the night they were all four huddled together in one nest box. Is this essentially a huddle box? I've never heard of that. I put down a bunch of extra pine shavings in the box they were in hoping that it would keep out any draft that might come through the seams from outside. They have a heat plate in the coop but I was surprised that they had chosen the box furthest from it.

 

[lysmandor]

Hello. I'm new to chick raising too and mine went outside (at 5 weeks old) this last weekend. I have four rhode island red hens. They seemed to be doing well but it got a bit windy/cold this evening and when I went out to close them in for the night they were all four huddled together in one nest box. Is this essentially a huddle box? I've never heard of that. I put down a bunch of extra pine shavings in the box they were in hoping that it would keep out any draft that might come through the seams from outside. They have a heat plate in the coop but I was surprised that they had chosen the box furthest from it.

I guess that a nest box with lots of bedding could act as a huddle box, if it's small enough! But I think they're different things - nest boxes are there primarily for when they start laying, huddle boxes are used to help chicks stay warm. I'm a newbie though so someone correct me if I'm wrong!

 

[rosemarythyme]

I think in a week or so, when your temps are more stable out and the chicks are a little more feathered, they should be good to go out.

Really great job at getting them weaned off heat indoors so far though.

 

[katarobb]

I guess that a nest box with lots of bedding could act as a huddle box, if it's small enough! But I think they're different things - nest boxes are there primarily for when they start laying, huddle boxes are used to help chicks stay warm. I'm a newbie though so someone correct me if I'm wrong!

I know the purposes are different, I just wondered what the physical difference would be. It seemed like maybe my chicks came up with their own huddle box. They were moving around and ready to eat when I went out this morning so it seemed to work!