When to move chicks to coop- in Michigan

[Chickadooo]

I kept mine in a box with pine shavings also but in my husbands office. I put netting over the top cuz they will fly out of a 2 ft tall box. I used a heat lamp in the brooder so started at 95 degrees and weaned five degrees weekly till at 70 degrees and overnight temperatures were not below 70. At this time they are mostly feathered out as well which is important for thermoregulation. So you got two weeks to get that chic coop and hopefully run done. Is it done yet?

If your temperatures are high I would worry about overheating the chicks in the garage. My garage gets way too hot when heat is high. You may want to bring them in the house in a laundry room or space out of the way where they are not bothered or too messy. FYI I put a pad under the box in case they knock over a waterer to save floor underneath. If you do this heat lamp is advised especially if have ac.

It's nearly done, it'll only take 6 more hours or less I imagine. My hubby is a quick hard worker, thankfully! Lol
I've only got cement floor in garage so I'm not worried about messes really. I've been keeping the garage door open for air flow and keeping lamp off with these high temps.

 

[Melky]

That does help, I actually have an XL dog crate in my basement that I could bring up and use.. perfect. Now the question is, what's the best method for bedding using a dog crate? It has one of those thick plastic trays on the bottom.

Good question. I use mine only for transports because my chicks kick the pine mulch out. Now I may use newspaper so I don’t leave a trail in my vets office of pine mulch or different carrier. If you can cover the sides so the pine mulch stays in then might work.

 

[Chickadooo]

Thank you for that

Chicken wire isn't pest and predator proof, so if you did use chicken wire I'd suggest you consider reinforcing it with welded wire or hardware cloth with no wider than 1/2" openings. If you can't cover the whole thing with smaller opening wire, do at least the bottom few feet as that's where you'll have the most issues, and apron it out at least 12" (18-24" would be better) to prevent pests from digging in as well.



I added new chicks this year as well... they were raised outside in the run from the start, with a heating pad. It worked so well and was far easier to manage than a brooder inside the house that I don't plan on ever brooding anywhere else again. The chicks joined the adults in the coop before 6 weeks. Just goes to show that you have options as far as raising chicks, and that it's technically never too early to have them out.

Thank you for that info! These answers have all been very helpful and very appreciated!

 

[Chickadooo]

Good question. I use mine only for transports because my chicks kick the pine mulch out. Now I may use newspaper so I don’t leave a trail in my vets office of pine mulch or different carrier. If you can cover the sides so the pine mulch stays in then might work.

Oh maybe putting up some plastic just a little up the sides.. good thinking.. might try that in a few more days.

 

[Chickadooo]

My first flock was all the same age when purchased and the were chicks. I kept them inside the house and in a brooder box. When they were smelling up my room- I moved the brooder box to the garage (weather was good and they still had a heat source)
When they were fully feathered they moved out side to the coop.

This year I bought four new chicks- but I didn’t introduce them to my existing flock until they were big enough to hold their own with my fully grown hens.
I had them in the garage in dog kennels until they were ready to introduce.
Hope this helps.

I'm such a paranoid chick mama..
This big enough for 10 chicks till it's coop time?!

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'm such a paranoid chick mama..
This big enough for 10 chicks till it's coop time?!

Probably a bit tight for the number of chicks but at least they're still really little right now. I did 2 sq ft per chick until they were out of the brooder, but they also had access to the run as early as 2 or 3 weeks?

Also how big are the gaps in that crate? You might need to wrap the lower half of that with something like wire or plastic mesh, or you might end up with a few chicks squeezing out. If you do need to do so, attach your reinforcement on the inside of the crate wire, not outside, so they can't push it open a little and then get stuck between the layers.

 

[wyoDreamer]

I am north of Green Bay, WI. I just bought 15 Cornish cross chicks, they are a couple days old. I am raising them out in the barn with a warming plate. I usually use a heating pad "cave" but these chicks are really putting off the heat and the heat plate that I am using is almost too warm for them.
How old are your chicks?

 

[wyoDreamer]

Sorry, I see that they are 1 week and 2.5 weeks old. If you have a way keep them warm, I would move them to the coop as soon as it is done - they don't need access to the run right away. Even a small area blocked off to keep them confined would work. I like to use the Mama Heating Pad method to raise my chicks out in the barn. I don't like heat lamps - too much of a fire danger and a good way to burn myself. I am a klutz. With the heating pad, they can go into the cave when they are cold and come out to eat-drink-run around like little nut jobs. As they grow in feathers, they spend less time in the cave and more on top of it.

Without heat, probably best to wait until they are fully feathered. Mine feathered out by 4 weeks old.

 

[50-45-1]

I would use pine shavings but use some cardboard or something to attach a 6 inch wall around the edges of the cage. They will scratch that stuff everywhere.

 

[Chickadooo]

Sorry, I see that they are 1 week and 2.5 weeks old. If you have a way keep them warm, I would move them to the coop as soon as it is done - they don't need access to the run right away. Even a small area blocked off to keep them confined would work. I like to use the Mama Heating Pad method to raise my chicks out in the barn. I don't like heat lamps - too much of a fire danger and a good way to burn myself. I am a klutz. With the heating pad, they can go into the cave when they are cold and come out to eat-drink-run around like little nut jobs. As they grow in feathers, they spend less time in the cave and more on top of it.

Without heat, probably best to wait until they are fully feathered. Mine feathered out by 4 weeks old.

What do you mean cave?
Would I use a heating pad or a heating lamp with a timer during the winter months, which is better in your opinion? When they are grown, I Don't imagine they would all fit on the pad during winter when they get cold.. I'm clueless though, I've never done this before