Topic of the Week - Moving Chicks Outside

[3KillerBs]

As a side-note, when I put my chicks out in the brooder pen, I hang the adults’ feeder and the chicks’ feeder next to each other with just the wire of the brooder between them. I do the same with the waterer. That way they learn to eat and drink peacefully together, so when the chicks begin integration at around 2 weeks old the adults are not bullying them away from resources.

Someone advised me to feed them on the fenceline for my first integration last spring and it's worked wonderfully well for every batch.

Additionally, the adults teach the babies how to use the horizontal nipple waterers.

 

[Blooie]

Yep….win, win all the way!!

 

[Cluckapalooza]

View attachment 2986503
​

After a few weeks, our little fluffy butts are feathered out enough to allow them to regulate their body temperatures and they can be weaned off the heat and moved outside to the coop, or an outdoor brooder. Some of our members choose to brood chicks outdoors from the start even.

There are many ways to do this transition successfully, so this week I would like to hear your thoughts and practices when it comes to moving chicks outside and having them adapt to living out there. Specifically:

- Do you brood your chicks indoors or outside and if the latter, how do you go about it?
- If you brood indoors, at what age do you do the transition from brooder to outside?
- Any tips for making the transition easier for the little ones?

View attachment 1364385

Pic by @azygous
​

For a complete list of our Topic of the Week threads, see here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/topic-of-the-week-thread-archive

I let mom hatch 5 adopted eggs. Kept them in a kennel in my bathroom. I kept a brooder heater nearby in case mom wasn’t enough. At 4 weeks, I moved mom and babies out to a temporary run and coop next to the main one. That way everyone else got used to the new additions. At 5 weeks, mom was over the babies and started getting irritable. I moved her back with the big girls and let the babies have the run of the little coop( no supplemental heat but I’m in Louisiana). A week and a half later, after a week of monsoon rain , the little coop flooded. I moved the babies into the big run and watched them for a while. Everyone seemed to be just fine and they’ve been in there during the day. I have to put them in the small coop to sleep as the big girls won’t let them in the other coop yet (it is a little small for all of them). I am almost done with the new bigger coop so I’ll move them all into that one at the same time and hope for the best. I’m am not looking forward to the establishing of the pecking order. It’s so hard not to try to intervene.

 

[WoodyM]

Our chicks go outside immediately - day 1. They have a "coop" within a coop with heat and wind/breeze protection. First few days they are limited to a small 4'x4' area with a lamp and heat table. After that they have full run of the coop (8x10) for 2 weeks. They have access to both outdoor covered runs after that. Heat table is 24 hours, heat lamp is only 5pm - 9am after week #2. These are predominately meat birds but have also raised some JGiants this way. Only have lost 2 out of 70 - to pasty butt when I got stuck out of town and one to wry-neck. I am in SoCal and we try and time the allocation to the weather

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Oh my if you post any questions on FB about moving chicks outside, you get 80% (maybe higher) answering with a chart that lists the weeks by degrees. They freak at the mere idea of moving chicks out before the outdoor temps match the chick's age.
I think some of these chicks might be laying eggs before they get outside.

 

[featherhead007]

Just don’t move the chicks outside. If my babies get too old for the brooder, I add another room addition to the house!

 

[TinyRaptorDodos]

How much longer till I should put him out? It’s colder here. Around 38 degrees Fahrenheit, I was thinking once he can eat the adult feed? But he might get too big, maybe he’d be fine in the brooder until then or at least until all the snow is gone…

As for integrating him all I normally do is set him next to my nicest hens in the coop on the roost at night and I usually works, even with adult hens. All my hens free range and can push open the door in the morning so there is no risk of them being stuck in a coop together, but it is quite cold and he’s very small compared to my hens

 

[BeefQuesoritto]

Just don’t move the chicks outside. If my babies get too old for the brooder, I add another room addition to the house!

Wow, great tip. I'll have to get started on my addition asap... I wonder how quick I can get a concrete guy out here to pour the foundation...

But really, thanks for this thread. Good timing. I've been thinking my stinkers need to go outside. Some are flying! This is the little nudge I needed. Thanks, yall!

 

[Masonjars]

Oh my if you post any questions on FB about moving chicks outside, you get 80% (maybe higher) answering with a chart that lists the weeks by degrees. They freak at the mere idea of moving chicks out before the outdoor temps match the chick's age.
I think some of these chicks might be laying eggs before they get outside.

I'm so glad I found this thread! I've been using The Chart as well, but my chicks are running out of room in their enclosure in the garage and they're almost totally feathered...out they go this weekend!

 

[Millsa]

My chicks are 4.5 weeks and im planning on moving them to a brooder in the coop in a week or two. I do have a rooster in my flock.. should i be concerned about integration with a rooster? We can move him to his own location if we have to BUT…. Was hoping to integrate this next flock of four with the hens and the rooster at the same time.