Transitional Brooder

[lurae]

I have a few layers currently but will be picking up 10 chicks on May 12th (hatch date is the 11th). I haven't had babies for 30+ years so could sure use some advice. Way back in my chicken days I had stacked brooders and raised 100 chicks a year to butcher. Now just looking at a few layers. My current girls are laying great, first season for them. I will have the chicks in a big bathtub (indoors) for a few weeks, not sure how long and then put them in a larger brooder outside until they are big enough to go out with my current free-range hens. The chicks are Copper Marans and Cuckoo Marans.

Now my questions:
I'm going to build my outside brooder but not sure how big it needs to be for 10 pullets. I have plans for one that is 2x4 floor space but that does not seem sufficient, do I need to enlarge it? Any idea how much sf I need per pullet? They won't go in this brooder until they are feathered out and won't go in with my hens (Australorps and Cuckoo M) until they are close to them in size.
Also planning on two each waterers and feeders, the ones that hold quart jars. Will that be enough?
Any ideas or questions please give me a holler!

Spent sometime measuring today and feel that 3x5 would be a better size. What do you think? Still not enough room for 10?

I posted this elsewhere and it was suggested to post here.

 

[meetthebubus]

What I used is a 4x8x4 for ten, they loved it they had lots of room to jump and run and now I use it as their house at night put two of them together after they started laying so it became 4x16x4

You can see it a bit on some of my vids like this one near the end of the video

And inside of them in this one

in case you like the idea