What do I do with my chicks who keep flying out of the brooder?

[Amydls]

Mine are doing the same thing in their corrugated plastic brooder..... found one chick today sitting on top of the heat lamp which hadn’t been on for a week, I got rid of it straight away to avoid them flying up there. My chicks are going from a disused bathroom inside to the garage tomorrow which we figure out the new coop... I think you’d be best to get some chicken wire or hardware class on top of your brooder

 

[Chasingcars]

I know this sounds nerdy..but I always have th next stage prepped cause you never know when this chicks will be ready for it!
I’d hate the idea of they need more space but I havent got round to building it yet!
Those chicks can be adventurous pests pretty quickly..
You don’t need separate spaces like me but you do need to know where they’re going after the Brooder stage gets too stressful, small or generally unmanageable , especially if you have an established flock using your main coop.

I usually...hatch then when ready ..into brooder with heat plates
Wk3 off daytime heat
wk4 off all heat but still inside brooder with days outside in teenage coop/run
Wk 5 every day outside with some nights
Wk 6 outside forever regardless of weather! deep bedding in coop and covered run
Wk 8 into larger coop with large freeranging enclosure

Brooder -small coop & covered run- large coop & freeranging fenced space
3 stages then some will be added to my existing flock and some sold on ....

Every stage is cleaned and ready as some hatches grow faster ..are naughtier ( louder.smellier ..or just generally super cute pests) and outgrow one stage before I think they will ...then I can start another hatch and it’s eat sleep repeat...

 

[gator75]

I have a pair of 3 week chicks and a single 4 week chick. Can I put them outside permanently in their mini coop? Was going to put them in there for a few weeks then into the big coop with my other two hens. In Florida and lows wont get under 60 till this weekend (then low 50s). Had them outside all day yesterday and they seemed fine. Have heat on them in the garage at night. They are making a mess and outgrowing their brooder.

 

[Chasingcars]

chickens are designed to live outside but as we mollycoddle them we have to ween them off the heat ...I think most chicks are kept on heat tooooo long..just my opinion of course but I believe those feathers are there for a reason..not just to make them more attractive
Stop heat in the day for a few days..put them outside in the day .then stop heat at night for a few days..then pop them in their outside coop as long as they have the choice of inside or outside ..it’s time for them to grow up..your lovely big chicks now!
If they huddle together and look cold sad and generally miserable take a small step back ...but my chicks love being outside compared to a boring brooder!
Florida chicks they can surely survive outside if my chicks survive English Peak District snow wind rain and minus temps ..trust your instincts...

 

[JudysMuscovy]

My chicks are 3 weeks old and keep flying out of the brooder and making a mess. What type of place should I put them in now?

I put a piece of screen over the top so they can't fly out

 

[llombardo]

Once they are feathered in, chicks can handle just about any weather an adult can. You just have to take the time to get them adjusted to it. I've had 4 week olds, outside without heat when the nights hit 17*. They were completely fine and happy.

I do not feel comfortable with it. I'm looking at about 2 more weeks. In the mean time I'm in the process of building Fort Knox for them.

 

[nana h]

YES!! They aren't doing it to annoy you....they are doing it because the unrelenting warmth, same four walls and confinement are getting to them. They know there's a world out there - if they were with Mama Hen they'd have been all over the place exploring and learning about the big world at just a couple of days old, and they'd be learning how to be chickens. They'd be scratching in the dirt, taking dust baths, finding little tidbits to eat, and just ducking under her for a quick warm-up......if they were even close to where she'd wandered off! If they didn't spot her right away, they'd snuggle down together for a bit, then be up and back at it, drinking out of mud puddles and having a blast. They don't have any of those opportunities in a box.

Welcome to BYC!

Yeah, I feel bad that my 3 aren't getting to be chickens. Last time I had baby chicks they were hatched outdoors under a hen, who took great care of them. As I live where I can't have a rooster (we can barely have hens) natural chicks are not an option.

 

[Blooie]

I have a couple of videos of my chicks being raised outside, in a brooder pen within the run, no heat lamps, ducking under their Mama Heating Pad exactly as they do under a broody hen. THEY decide when they want to warm up, not me or some chart. THEY decide if the tidbits on the ground are edible, not me. They don't live in a box, but outside among the flock. They run around exploring and keeping themselves totally entertained. They learn to be chickens by watching the experts. The only difference between the chicks I raise this way and those raised under a broody hen is that the heating pad cave doesn't move around. It's always there in the same spot!

Be happy to post a video if anyone would like to see it.

 

[chonsey]

I have a couple of videos of my chicks being raised outside, in a brooder pen within the run, no heat lamps, ducking under their Mama Heating Pad exactly as they do under a broody hen. THEY decide when they want to warm up, not me or some chart. THEY decide if the tidbits on the ground are edible, not me. They don't live in a box, but outside among the flock. They run around exploring and keeping themselves totally entertained. They learn to be chickens by watching the experts. The only difference between the chicks I raise this way and those raised under a broody hen is that the heating pad cave doesn't move around. It's always there in the same spot!

Be happy to post a video if anyone would like to see it.

Yep, had to put mine in the coop with a heating pad setup last night. They were becoming escape artists. Everytime it was time to feed or cleanup after them they'd fly out.

 

[ashlandco]

I would love to see a video! And I was thinking about brooding outside in the run, but the weather is completely unpredictable where I live