Last year I evicted my chicks out to the coop at 5.5 weeks. I just couldn't handle the mess, the noise, and the dust one more minute! They were well feathered, but I certainly wouldn't say they were fully feathered. But it was them or me! The coop wasn't even finished yet, and we hadn't started the run. But out they went. I put a heat lamp out there for them and made the mistake of putting a wireless thermometer in the coop with them. All night long I watched that thermometer drop, and all night long I got up out of my nice warm bed, put my boots and jacket on over my jammies and ran out to check on them. They were fine - I was freezing. I fully expected to find them under the heat lamp I put there for them. Nope. They were in a little fluffy pile in front of the pop door on the opposite side of the coop despite the 19 and 20 degree night time temps and the thermometer struggling to hit 40 during the day. Second night, same story.....so the morning of the third day I took out the heat lamp. They weren't using it anyway and I wasn't risking a coop fire for no reason. That third night it snowed. And the snow days kept coming, all the way until June 6th. Every single chick grew up strong and healthy, and they are still running around all over the place. My coop is uninsulated and unheated. They'll cuddle for warmth without the lamp.
Now I start my chicks out in the unheated run from day one, with no heat lamp. They have a bit of leftover fencing folded into a frame, a heating pad, a towel and some straw. I raised one chick that way last winter - it was 4 below zero in the coop and he was a lone chick recovering from an injury so he didn't even have any snuggle-mates. He thrived. He's now a big, beautiful 5 month old rooster. This year's first batch of chicks were out there from the start, and since they are now 5 and 6 weeks old they have been evicted into the main coop and run and a new batch of babies are out there in their old pen. These were hatched on Monday, arrived on Thursday, and living outside on Friday.
Chicks need a lot of care in the beginning, but they aren't the fragile little divas we think they are, nor for as long as we think they are. If they were hatched with a broody they'd be spending most of their time out from under her, exploring and learning, and then popping back under her for quick warm-ups off and on all day, even in freezing temperatures. They'd be snuggled under, on top of, and around her all night. When there is no broody, they snuggle with each other.
Now I start my chicks out in the unheated run from day one, with no heat lamp. They have a bit of leftover fencing folded into a frame, a heating pad, a towel and some straw. I raised one chick that way last winter - it was 4 below zero in the coop and he was a lone chick recovering from an injury so he didn't even have any snuggle-mates. He thrived. He's now a big, beautiful 5 month old rooster. This year's first batch of chicks were out there from the start, and since they are now 5 and 6 weeks old they have been evicted into the main coop and run and a new batch of babies are out there in their old pen. These were hatched on Monday, arrived on Thursday, and living outside on Friday.
Chicks need a lot of care in the beginning, but they aren't the fragile little divas we think they are, nor for as long as we think they are. If they were hatched with a broody they'd be spending most of their time out from under her, exploring and learning, and then popping back under her for quick warm-ups off and on all day, even in freezing temperatures. They'd be snuggled under, on top of, and around her all night. When there is no broody, they snuggle with each other.
