want to get chicks but worries about the heat...

[roxsam]

I have been wanting to have chickens for a while but my husband didn't go for it until now! I would like to get about six chicks but I live in Florida and am worried it is too hot for chicks right now. It has been in the upper 80's or 90's during the day. Our friend is letting us borrow a brooder he built and it would be kept probably on our screened in back porch so the chicks would be outside all day. Is it too hot foe them? There wouldn't be a way to decrease their temp each week...how would that affect them? Is there anyway to cool it off in there? I really don't want to have to wait until it's cooler to get chicks since that's not until about October!

Thanks for any help you can give me!

 

[A.T. Hagan]

It's not too hot to brood chicks in Florida. You may well need to turn the light/heat off during the hotter parts of the day like I am doing now, but it's not too hot to brood them.

The thing with chicks or older birds is that they need plenty of clean, fresh water, shade, and good air flow. This doesn't necessarily mean a fan on them, but they need good ventilation. If your brooder is well ventilated and it's in the shade there's no reason not to use it.

I'm using 65w bulbs right now and in a few more days I'll be turning them off for even the youngest birds during the day.

Once the sun goes down I turn them back on.

 

[BookWorm243]

First

and

I don't think it will end up being to hot, If they are going to be in the shade they should be fine. Like A.T. said they are going to need plenty of cool fresh water, and air flow. During the day they will not need much help with a heat lamp but at night they will for a little bit. Even if you had gotten them earlier they would still be facing the heat now. As they get older if you feel they are getting to hot you could had a little fan just to help them cool off a little easier. I personally like brooding in the warmer months as they can be outside quicker, and have never had a problem with them. I am actually hoping to get some more chicks in July, by that time it will be around the 90's here.

 

[roxsam]

That's great news! Thanks so much. I'm thinking they may actually be better off in our yard n the shade, it's probably cooler than the porch since there's a good breeze. But I'll just wait until they get here and use My judgment then.

AT, I'm in north central Florida too. It makes me feel better knowing you are successful in raising chicks in this weather.

I am going to order my chicks from Murray McMurrays...is this a good place to get them from?

(Sorry about the typos in the header and my first post, I'm posting from my phone!)

Thanks again!

 

[chickensinwasillaAK]

I've bought from McMurray two times in the past. Got my last batch of 75 in April, which is still cold in Alaska. All the chicks arrived alive. Never lost one till week 6 when one just keeled over dead for no appearant cause other then nature.

 

[roxsam]

Isn't it always cold in Alaska?

I'm sorry about your chick loss. I hope I don't lose any, I don't deal with that very well

but I am glad you had good experiences with murray, my friend did as well. I think I will go ahead and order my chicks...3 barred rock and 3 Rhode island red...hope those are good choices!! I can't wait for my babies!!
I'm sure I will be back with lots of questions once they get here!

 

[A.T. Hagan]

You may have already discovered by now that hatcheries have a minimum order number of chicks. Usually twenty five. There are some that will let you order fewer but they make up for it by putting "packing peanuts" in, which usually means unwanted male chicks, to keep sufficient warmth in the box so the chicks won't chill. I believe My Pet Chicken will ship fewer, but I haven't ordered from them so I can't say for sure. You'll probably pay big for them though.

There are poultry sales & swaps all over the state. You might check them out.

Cmom keeps the list for us which you can find here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=241786

I've got some young, but started birds that I'll be selling soon if you are interested.

 

[roxsam]

Oh, silly me! I didn't even think to look at minimums. You're right though, mcmurray will only ship 25 minimum...that's a few too many chickens for me lol. My Pet Chicken will ship a 5 minimum to my zip code so that works!
I may be interested in your birds...how old are they and what kind?

Thanks.

 

[Laurajean]

A.T. Hagan :

You may have already discovered by now that hatcheries have a minimum order number of chicks. Usually twenty five. There are some that will let you order fewer but they make up for it by putting "packing peanuts" in, which usually means unwanted male chicks, to keep sufficient warmth in the box so the chicks won't chill. I believe My Pet Chicken will ship fewer, but I haven't ordered from them so I can't say for sure. You'll probably pay big for them though.

There are poultry sales & swaps all over the state. You might check them out.

Cmom keeps the list for us which you can find here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=241786

I've got some young, but started birds that I'll be selling soon if you are interested.

I got mine from MyPetChicken. I think they're website says as few as two or three, something like that, but it varies based on your location. I'm somewhat remote, so I had to get 8. And yes, I did pay more for them, but to me it's worth it. Just starting out with chickens at the time, I was not willing to start with 25!! I got excellent service from them by the way, and would recommend them.​

 

[chickensinwasillaAK]

Isn't it always cold in Alaska?



No, we have nice summers. We just don't tell you about it because we want to keep all the best for ourselves Depending on where in the state you are, today ranged from 50 to 80's. Fairbanks would be warmer now but they have a big fire up there. Southeast Alaska rains quite a bit but where I am averages low 70 to mid 80's in the summer. Weather changes here fast, most Alaskans know if you don't like the current weather, wait for 30 minutes and it'll change.

Good luck on your chick purchase, see if there are some friends that would want to split an order with you. There is likely some idiot like myself that can't get chicken math figured out and gets 75 when he could have had 25.