On my first post I wrote about looking up your city ordinances, selecting breeds and ordering chicks. I’ve since decided to make this a 3 part series to cover tending to baby chicks and hens including their brooders and coops, separately. Today, In part 2 we’ll cover taking care of baby chicks and frugal simple brooders you can make at home.
(One thing to remember, there are many different methods and ways to raise baby chicks. What I am sharing is what has worked for me. Feel free to research and experiment to find what will work best for you.)
All About Brooders
A brooder is a temporary shelter for baby chicks where the temperature can be regulated. Since they don’t have their mama hen to keep them warm by sitting on them, we must imitate those conditions until they are around 6 weeks old and can be transitioned outdoors.
Before you bring your furry balls of cuteness home, the most important thing is to create a brooder and gather a few supplies to create a warm and healthy environment for your new chicks.
Brooders
Brooders can be as luxurious or as simple as a cardboard box.
People have used kiddie swimming pools, custom built boxes and plastic tubs. As long as the shelter is draft free, your chicks should stay nice and toasty.
I use one of my extra large dog kennels that I have for my German Shepherd Dogs.
In order to keep it draft free I place cardboard around the perimeter of the dog kennel.
Equipment Needed
There are only a handful of items that you’ll need to pick up for your brooder.
1. Heat Lamp
You can purchase a heat lamp from your local farming supply store, feed and garden store or online. I enjoyed using my dog kennel as I could string the heat lamp through the top bars.
With the heat lamp you’ll also need to purchase a regular 100 volt lightbulb or a red 250 volt heat lamp bulb. I have personally used a 100 volt lightbulb when raising a handful of chicks at a time, inside my house and didn’t need the excess heat. Once I started raising 10-15 chicks at a time, outdoors, I made sure to use a 250 volt red heat lamp bulb.
When you bring your day old chicks home, you’ll also need to adjust the height of the heat lamp to give them enough heat. I believe at the beginning I made sure my heat lamp was hung 6″ from the ground.
How do you know if the chicks are getting enough heat?
If your chicks sleep directly underneath the heat lamp, they are too cold. You’ll need to lower the heat lamp. If your chicks sleep way outside the perimeter of the heat lamp, they are too hot. You’ll need to raise the heat lamp. If they lay and sleep right below the circular edge of the heat lamp, they are just right.
As your chicks get older, you’ll notice their pattern. Once you start to see them move farther away from the heat source above, raise the heat lamp a couple inches. Once they are about 6 weeks, they will no longer need the heat source.
2. A waterer and feeder
Again, you can pick these up at the farming supply store, feed and garden store or purchase online. The waterer and feeder above are perfectly sized for baby chicks. You want to make sure to not get a large waterer as they can accidentally drown. As they get older, which happens quickly, you can purchase a larger waterer and feeder. Once they get to the coop, you can hang the larger ones as well.
3. Bedding
There are a variety of different absorbent items you can use for their bedding. Pine shavings, shredded news/paper, paper towels and straw are among the most popular. Very importantly, you’ll want to make sure to avoid flat newspaper as their bedding. The slippery surface can cause a deformity called, “splayed leg.”
This can lead to the other chicks pecking on the deformed legged chick to death and if it survives you’ll need to deal with a deformed chicken. Another item to avoid is cedar shavings. The oils in the wood can irritate the lungs in the chicks leading to later respiratory issues.
One thing you’ll find out right away is that chicks poop… A LOT! Make sure to change their bedding frequently.
4. Roosting Poles
Baby chicks just like full grown chickens love to roost. It’s very simple to add a roosting bar to your brooder giving them the opportunity to roost. Is this necessary, no… but your chicks will love it!
5. Feed
This is a subject personal to each individual. Depending on where you order your chicks, you can either have them vaccinated or unvaccinated. Usually for or .
Personally, my chicks come unvaccinated and I feed them an unmedicated feed. For others, if there chicks have not been vaccinated they sell a medicated feed said to keep your chicks healthy for the first 3-4 months of life. It’s up to you whether you want to feed your chicks a medicated feed or not.
They sell everything from medicated feed, unmedicated feed to organic starter feed. Depending on what you buy, the mix should let you know how many weeks you need to feed your chick starter feed before moving to layer or broiler feed.
You’ve picked up your furry balls of cuteness, now what?
As soon as you bring them home, one by one, place each of the chicks beak into the waterer of their brooder. This usually teaches them right away where the water is. It’s so cute to watch them realize what it is and start drinking water right away.
For the first 2-3 weeks you’ll want to keep a constant eye on them checking them at least 5 times per day. Do they look warm enough? Are they eating? Are they drinking? Also, you’ll want to keep an eye out for “pasting up.”
Pasting up is a condition in which their droppings cake up and block their vent opening, preventing them from passing any more droppings. This is a deadly condition if left “pasted up” and must be dealt with immediately. If you see signs of caked up poop, all you need to do is run warm water and gently wipe away the poop from their vent. Continually make sure to check that the chicks continue to poop on their own.
In the first 2-3 weeks I check my chicks vents every day.
Besides regularly changing their bedding, really all you need to do is make sure they’re eating, drinking and pooping.
You’ll find that the chicks grow and change quickly. After about 3-4 weeks, weather permitting, you can take them outside for a couple hours to enjoy the fresh air.
Chicks turn into chickens quickly
One thing you’ll learn right away is that chicks turn into chickens quickly. If keeping your brooder indoors, you’ll need to realize that the older they get, the more mess and smell they’ll create. Really, after 4 weeks, you’ll be anxious to have them outdoors.
Many people order their chicks early Spring. However, in my region, with colder weather, I now wait until the end of May or first of June to order my chicks. This allows me to raise my chicks in my garage and with the warmer weather, move them outdoors more quickly. If you’re raising layers, this means they’ll start laying towards the end of the year and if you’re raising broilers, they’ll be ready for harvest in the Fall.
As long as they’re outside of my house, I’m okay with that schedule.
Urban Chicken Keeping 101
Any funny stories you’d like to share about raising baby chicks?
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Sewanee Tennessee,
including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more.
Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different
egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. Sewanee
Tennessee also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Sewanee Tennessee, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale,
turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale,
chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of
baby chicks for sale in Sewanee TN.
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Sewanee Tennessee
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
their site and request one if you are interested.
Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Sewanee Tennessee * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Sewanee
Tennessee * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
Sewanee Tennessee is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Sewanee,
Tennessee Baby chicks are extremely
charming as well as
tough to withstand,
yet it's finest to prepare for their
arrival before you obtain them. Prepare initially
by gathering not just the
proper materials, but
also the proper
expertise to look after
them. Raising baby chicks is reasonably
easy, you just need
to give them with the following: A tidy as well as warm and comfortable
habitat A lot of food and also water Attention and also
love Environment Your environment can be an easy box, aquarium,
cat service provider, or guinea
pig cage. Line it with old towels as well as
coverings (without loose
strings!) to start, and after a few weeks utilize straw over paper.
Note: Avoid utilizing just
paper or various other slipper
surface areas-- or your chicks legs could grow
misshapen. You likewise need
something to dish out food and
water in, such as a chicken feeder and water
recipe from the feed store, or a pickle container
cover for food and a pet bird water dispenser from a pet store. Likewise, as the chicks age you can introduce a perch
into the habitat to get them
educated on perching. Warmth To
maintain your chicks heat you need to
provide them with a warmth source.
This could be as easy as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp style lamp from a
hardware store, or an infrared reptile warmth
bulb additionally function very
well (my
suggestion). Chicks need this
warmth 24/7 until their downy fluff is
changed with plumes (which can take up to 2 months). The recently
hatched require a temperature level
in between 90 as well as 100 degrees,
as well as every week this could
be reduced by
about 5 degrees or
so. The heat resource ought
to get on just one side of the cage
to allow chicks a range of
temperatures. The chicks are your finest
thermometer- if they are concealing in the
contrary edge of your heat
lamp, you have to
lower the temperature level. If
they are smothering each various other under the
heat (not just curling up),
you need to include some heat.
Housekeeping
Tidiness is vital and also it keeps your chicks healthy. Make sure to transform
the bed linens
typically and
constantly give tidy
food as well as water Food as well as water.
Chicks expand quite fast
which requires a lot of tidy
food and also water. Give
enough whatsoever times and examine
commonly to
stop dehydrated and also
hungry chicks. Chick food is different compared
to grown-up chicken food, and it can be found in both medicated and non-medicated varieties. Feed chick food for the
initial two months, then
switch to a grower food (~ 17 %
healthy protein) for one more 2 months,
then to a somewhat
lower healthy protein feed or a level feed
(if you have levels). Soil Some chicks want
to get a head start on taking
filth bathrooms, while others won't use up that activity up until they are
older. If you have the space in your chick
unit, introduce a tray of sand or
dirt for them to shower in.
Attention and also love There are a couple of benefits to hanging
out with your chicks. To start
with, they will certainly probably bond with you and also
not run away as adults. Second, if you
examine your chicks daily as well as
see their habits, you could
capture health problem or other troubles previously. Watch out for wheezing, hopping, or
other harmful
indications. Make certain to
likewise consider
their poop, as diarrhea can result in matted plumes as well
as clogged cloaca.
Lastly, it is essential to look out
for social issues, such as the
tiniest chick getting badgered. Empty nest disorder So your
chicks are currently completely feathered
as well as its time for them to leave the
safety of your residence
as well as move outside into a
coop. Check out our
section on chicken coops for more information
concerning coops as well as
appropriate coop environments.