Where to put brooder?

[eponagirl]

Hello all,as newbies, we are expecting our first chicks this coming week and I wanted to see where most people put their brooders. What are the pros and cons people have experienced about putting it inside the home or in garage, etc. We don't have the coop built yet, so we won't be putting in there.

I was thinking of keeping it inside in a bathroom or some such place, but read of dust, etc that gets all over everything over time.

Any input of your experiences will help!

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

My brooder is on a table in the dining room. Ironic, eh?

The babies are almost 4 weeks and I am working on the outdoor brooder pen even as we speak. About this stage of the game they get really stinky and messy. I had 14 of them in there until this morning (five were sold).
Pros- I can see them constantly. I talk to them all the time so they are used to me and calmer when I'm around. I can keep an eye on food and water levels (so when they knock something over I know about it instantly).

Cons- They are messy, messy, messy. Dusty and stinky both. I scoop out the coop daily and stir it once more. It still smells like I have chickens in the dining room. They are also noisy little suckers. Thankfully at night they settle down and get quiet, but this morning around 5ish one of them figured out how to crow. Adorable, but noisy.

The big requirement is heat. The dining room is the only place I can get it warm enough at my house. Thus it wins. If I had a garage I might have a secondary brooder out there for when they hit about a month old. I'd say the true answer is up to how many you are getting and how big your brooder will be. It's all about personal tolerances.

Congrats on your new babies!

 

[azelgin]

I keep mine out in the tack room, next to my barn. I would rather have them in the garage, but that's where my cat sleeps. Not such a good idea giving him the temptation.

Having them in the tack room is OK, but the dust still gets all over the saddles and everything. I blow it all out with a leaf blower when they get moved to the coop. It's really going to depend on how many you want to raise, weather or not the dust will be a problem for you. We have 20~30 at a time and it would not work for us to keep that many in the house. When they hit three weeks old and the feathers really start to come in, they put out tons of dander.

Any place without drafts will work OK. We run two 250w red heat lamps, with one on a thermostat. The brooder is 4' x 5', so they have room to get out from under the lamps when they get too warm. We run two lights, so we don't have to worry about one burning out in the middle of the night and everybody freezing to death.

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

I keep mine in the basement under a 250 watt heat lamp. I would personally never have them upstairs because a) we have cats and b) I'm gone most of the day so I can't keep them clean as often as I would like.

They aren't too bad for the first week but after that they get very stinky and dusty. If there's only a few it's probably ok but I have anywhere from 20-40 at a time.

 

[eponagirl]

We are getting about 6 chicks from My Pet Chicken (meyer's)...I say about because I don't know if they will add anymore for safer shipping. (we are in CT) All are supposed to be pullets...we'll see!

I am getting an additional 4 pullets around May 1st that will be 6 weeks old at that time. By then our coop should be finished and perhaps I can move them out there and keep them separated from each other. I am worried about a fire with the brooder lamp out there though...it will be an infrared without light.

It sounds like they can stay inside with me in the house somewhere for at least 3 weeks before I have a "dust" problem (I have asthma and take med everyday as it is). Is that about right?

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

Ohhhh with asthma I don't know what to tell you. I don't have asthma (maybe I do?) but every time I go down the basement and clean quail cages while I have baby chickens down there I cough for days. With 6 I'd really suggest putting them downstairs if you have one or out in the garage/barn just to be on the safe side. The dust is in the air and by the time you see it and it settles it might be too late.

 

[azelgin]

Quote:
I'll have to agree with this. If you only had two or three, you might be OK. 6 of them is going to kick up a pretty good cloud of dust. I wouldn't worry about the light catching things on fire any more so in the coop, than the house. If a disaster happens, the fire will start in either place just as fast. Just be sure the heat lamp/ceramic heater is well secured.

 

[gritsar]

For starters my brooder was in the bike shed and the harley was on the porch.

 

[Faverolle Queen]

I'm with CityGirl....I keep mine in the dining room too!

After a few days I thought, "MAN, IS THIS WIERD OR WHAT?" But maybe not. I do talk to mine and can keep an eye on them more closely and they do settle down more when I am around.
Thanks for posting this citygirl, I don't feel so bad now.

 

[hikerchick]

I donated a corner of my weight room in the basement to the chicks. Dont' think I will be working out until they are done.