What Next??

[PVILLAGO]

My chicks are 3wks old now and I'm not sure what i should be doing for their continued growing process? They are getting big and try and fly out of their cardboard condo when I'm cleaning it.
They are getting tail feather now @ND their combs are coming in. They still snuggle under the heat lamp. My Chick Condo has 3 sections. 1 is feed and water 2. Brooder plate 3. Heat lamp
It's been really cold here in my part of Texas. I've worried they wouldn't make it but they have. Feathers coming in nicely. I have another long cardboard box i thought I'd add to their condo to mimic a run. To me they are too small to explore coop and they still need the heat so im keeping them in their condo for now. But what should I do or be doing for them now? TIA

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Rule of thumb I see is they need additional heat at least until their head feathers are mostly in. You could get a smaller box to hold them while cleaning that you can close

 

[Huntmaster]

@PVILLAGO Do they have coop to themselves? From earlier pics looks like it if so, I would cut door in brooder in food + water section to let them start roaming coop with food and water in coop also. That would let them start getting used to coop and still have heated sections to return and warm up and sleep for a week or so. Then I would remove brooder but leave a heat source slowly reducing heat until they are fully feathered.

 

[Huntmaster]

I'm not sure what i should be doing for their continued growing process?

After looking over your set up again and if they have coop to themselves, I would remove all brooder boxes except one with heat plate and start letting them run in whole coop, until fully feathered or stop using heat plate. But if you're still worrying about the cold at least do what I suggested in my first post. Give them the extra space of coop.

 

[CanadaEh]

My chicks are 3wks old now and I'm not sure what i should be doing for their continued growing process? They are getting big and try and fly out of their cardboard condo when I'm cleaning it.

I cover the brooder with some solid plywood with a small crack left open to keep the birds, heat, and dust in (instead of netting).

They are getting tail feather now @ND their combs are coming in. They still snuggle under the heat lamp. My Chick Condo has 3 sections. 1 is feed and water 2. Brooder plate 3. Heat lamp

make sure you raise your lamp every once in a while or have it on a dimmer to lower the heat. They need to haggle together directly under the lamp, not form a circle around it when there is to much heat. They grow feathers faster when they feel there is an urgent need for them.

It's been really cold here in my part of Texas. I've worried they wouldn't make it but they have. Feathers coming in nicely. I have another long cardboard box i thought I'd add to their condo to mimic a run. To me they are too small to explore coop and they still need the heat so im keeping them in their condo for now. But what should I do or be doing for them now? TIA

how big is the box and for how many chicks. We have ours up to 2 months once because of having to incubate way to early for our season. Given enough space in the brooder for the # and size of birds and not having it in own living room but garage or basement, it will not be a problem at all.

 

[PVILLAGO]

@PVILLAGO Do they have coop to themselves? From earlier pics looks like it if so, I would cut door in brooder in food + water section to let them start roaming coop with food and water in coop also. That would let them start getting used to coop and still have heated sections to return and warm up and sleep for a week or so. Then I would remove brooder but leave a heat source slowly reducing heat until they are fully feathered.

Yes. Its just for them. I was scared they're too young to roam around coop. I thought they could hurt themselves or break their necks trying to walk up to the roost or trying to fly?

 

[Huntmaster]

Yes. Its just for them. I was scared they're too young to roam around coop. I thought they could hurt themselves or break their necks trying to walk up to the roost or trying to fly?

Never had any trouble like that and have not heard of anyone else having trouble like that. As long as coop is safe for chickens it should be safe for your chicks. Chicks are raised with mother hens all the time in coops and free range so not really sure what you would be afraid of.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My chicks are 3wks old now and I'm not sure what i should be doing for their continued growing process? ............................................................................................................................................................ But what should I do or be doing for them now?

What you need for any brooder at any age is appropriate food, clean water, predator protection, and "weather" protection. Weather protection covers a lot of ground. They need a dry brooder. You do not want a breeze hitting them. They need decent ventilation so they are breathing fresh air. And they need a warm enough spot in the coldest conditions and a cool enough spot in the warmest conditions. Heat is just as dangerous if not more so than cold.

My 3' x 6' brooder is in the coop. I find my biggest challenge is the temperature swings. I've seen it go between freezing to in the 70's Fahrenheit pretty much overnight in winter. Or in summer temperatures can max out to over 100 F. In winter I use two 250 watt heat lamps to keep one end toasty warm, but the far end may have ice in it. In summer if I use any heat source at all it's a 75 watt bulb. I find that chicks straight from the incubator or post office can manage where they want to be if given the choice so I don't have to worry about keeping their brooder a perfect temperature. Al they need is the choice and they manage it.

If your brooder is inside your house with a constant temperature keeping one end warm enough and another end cool enough should be really easy. Outside it can be more challenging.

I've had chicks go through overnight lows in the mid 20's F with no supplemental heat at 5-1/2 weeks old. Just because they can survive and even thrive at those kinds of temperatures doesn't mean they have to. I don't see anything wrong with giving them the option of a warmer spot as long as they also have an option for a cooler spot.

I don't know how many chicks you have or how big that heat plate is. Hopefully it is big enough to handle all your chicks. If you are brooding inside your climate controlled home there is a pretty good chance they don't need any heat at all. I'd be tempted to remove the heat lamp and just leave the heat plate in there to see how much they actually use it. That way you avoid overheating them.

 

[PVILLAGO]

What you need for any brooder at any age is appropriate food, clean water, predator protection, and "weather" protection. Weather protection covers a lot of ground. They need a dry brooder. You do not want a breeze hitting them. They need decent ventilation so they are breathing fresh air. And they need a warm enough spot in the coldest conditions and a cool enough spot in the warmest conditions. Heat is just as dangerous if not more so than cold.

My 3' x 6' brooder is in the coop. I find my biggest challenge is the temperature swings. I've seen it go between freezing to in the 70's Fahrenheit pretty much overnight in winter. Or in summer temperatures can max out to over 100 F. In winter I use two 250 watt heat lamps to keep one end toasty warm, but the far end may have ice in it. In summer if I use any heat source at all it's a 75 watt bulb. I find that chicks straight from the incubator or post office can manage where they want to be if given the choice so I don't have to worry about keeping their brooder a perfect temperature. Al they need is the choice and they manage it.

If your brooder is inside your house with a constant temperature keeping one end warm enough and another end cool enough should be really easy. Outside it can be more challenging.

I've had chicks go through overnight lows in the mid 20's F with no supplemental heat at 5-1/2 weeks old. Just because they can survive and even thrive at those kinds of temperatures doesn't mean they have to. I don't see anything wrong with giving them the option of a warmer spot as long as they also have an option for a cooler spot.

I don't know how many chicks you have or how big that heat plate is. Hopefully it is big enough to handle all your chicks. If you are brooding inside your climate controlled home there is a pretty good chance they don't need any heat at all. I'd be tempted to remove the heat lamp and just leave the heat plate in there to see how much they actually use it. That way you avoid overheating them.

Thanks. Good information. They are in their coop. I have them on the floor in their cardboard condo. One room has food water. A d no heat. One room has a brooder plate. THE big family room has a heat lamp suspended from ceiling. No drafts.i think they're using heat lamp more than brooder plate cause they're getting bigger and taller.

 

[PVILLAGO]

Never had any trouble like that and have not heard of anyone else having trouble like that. As long as coop is safe for chickens it should be safe for your chicks. Chicks are raised with mother hens all the time in coops and free range so not really sure what you would be afraid of.

Everything. Thank you.