[nic_28]

I have reserved two day old Cream Legbar chicks that should be ready in 2 weeks time. I was looking at online brooders but I was wondering if theyd be too big for just two chicks? has anyone any plans/ideas for home made brooders for a small flock?

[GrannieAnnie]

I used 2 plastic storage boxes for small numbers of chicks, easier to keep warm too until they get a little bigger!

[Tony H]

hi i use an old viverium that i had, you can use anything realy even a cardbord box as long as the chicks have a heat spot that is at least 40degrees and they have enough room to get away from the heat if they want to ,chicks will always find the spot they feel comfortable in
good look with them 

[Sassy]

Agree Tony H. I have used a baby bath when they were tiny and then moved up to a large plastic box.

[nic_28]

thanks everyone, Im looking forward to having chicks to add to my beautiful brood. Im getting Cream Legbar and cant wait for those blue eggies! Ive got a cardboard box here that I can divide, if I feel its too big for 'em. would u recommend buying a heat lamp? or a chicken brooder (heater thingies) that the chicks go under?

[GrannieAnnie]

hi i use an old viverium that i had, you can use anything realy even a cardbord box as long as the chicks have a heat spot that is at least 40degrees and they have enough room to get away from the heat if they want to ,chicks will always find the spot they feel comfortable in
good look with them 

40?  What you trying to do cook them?  35.5C for the first week, reducing by 2 degrees a week until they are 4-6 weeks old and you get to a normal temperature.

[Tony H]

well acording to a site that i went on it as i said as a hot spot of 40c but the chicks should be able to get out of the heat and find a comfortable spot, if you read my whole comment that is what i said, i have a hot spot under the bulb but as you move away from it it drops down to 30c iat the other end, before you make unhelpfull comments on other posts please read what is being said.  

[GrannieAnnie]

No need to be rude Tony.  I certainly wasn't.  I have had thousands of chicks go through our brooders over the past few years, and I learnt through the experts.  There are a lot of people on the internet that don't really know what they are talking about.

When you have up to 500 chicks at a time under heat lamps, you have to get the heat right.  Wrong heat can lead to problems in later life, so its best to get it right at the start.

And I know about cool spots for them to escape to.  That's why I always advise people to have a brooder big enough for the chicks to escape and for the food and water to stay cool.

[joyfull]

as I have always been lucky/unlucky to have hens that go broody at the drop of an egg when it comes to artificially raising chicks I would always follow Grannie Annies advice - I have seen the hundreds of chicks she has raised. 

[Tony H]

I wasnt trying to be rude sorry if thats the way it came ac cross, i know what you are saying about big brooders for a lot of chicks but the question was from somone who was going to hatch a few chicks at home as a hobby, obviusly in your situation and the other breeders on here a set up like that wouldnt be any use  

[kegs]

hi i use an old viverium that i had, you can use anything realy even a cardbord box as long as the chicks have a heat spot that is at least 40degrees and they have enough room to get away from the heat if they want to ,chicks will always find the spot they feel comfortable in
good look with them 

Sorry Tony, but 40 deg is much too high.  Not only has GrannieAnnie given me lots of helpful advice but I also use a book by Katie Thear which I refer to constantly.

Katie Thear, who was considered a renowned poultry expert states (on the following web site) 35C for day 1 and 33C by the first week:

http://www.blpbooks.co.uk/articles/rearing_chicks/rearing_chicks_heat_lamps.php

The article goes on to state:

"The first three days are crucial and it is at this stage that casualties are most likely. As the chicks grow and feather up, they become increasingly hardy. In fact, there is some evidence that not having too much heat encourages more rapid feathering."

[Tony H]

Thanks kegs, well if thats the case why are there people out there saying that you should have that sort of set up for home rearing, I think that advice that is incorect shouldnt be given out its wrong and could lead to deths if you only need 35.7 degrees then they should state that not say 40 degrees is is ok, I will ajust my temp to the correct settings

[joyfull]

As Annie pointed out there are a lot of people out there who give out incorrect information (a little bit of knowledge can be a very bad thing), Katie Thear was very well know and a very good source of information for all small holding animals/birds.
Like I said I have always had broodies so cannot comment on such things as incubators and brooders 

[GrannieAnnie]

I put the photo of the big brooder shed on here just to show you that I do know what I am talking about Tony.  I'm sorry if I read your response wrong  .

It's just that yes, there are a lot of people out there who think they know everything, and we have all seen the posts by new chicken keepers who have problems, not only with their own hatched/raised chickens, but also with what they have brought from breeders who do not take care of their flocks when they are being raised.

I have also raised just 2 or 3 chicks at times, not only in those plastic boxes that I showed earlier, but in an old kitchen wall cupboard and once when desperate, in a banana box, which I stuck together lengthwise to give the chicks a bit more running around room.

But when you said 'at least' 40 degrees, that did worry me.  Even turkey poults only need 37.5C in their first week as they are more susceptible to chilling than chicks are in their first days.

As Joy and Kegs said, those first days are critical if you want lovely healthy chicks.  I have raised some of Joys chickens in the early days before she found out nearly all her girls will go broody if they even see an egg, and Kegs is right.  Katie Thear (RIP) was very well thought of in the poultry world.  

What I will say to anyone just starting out though, is that you don't absolutely need humidity meters and thermometers to raise your chicks. It's good if you can, but as you will have seen yourself Tony, if they are too warm, they will move away from the heat, too cold and they will crowd under the heat lamp.

So the ideal temperature is that they are under the heat source, but not all crowded together.  There should be a small gap in the centre of the crowd.  This gives the chicks on the outside of the circle enough room to jump over the others to have an extra warm in the centre, then the others will move out a little to give that gap back.

If they are spread out around the outside of the brooder, they are too warm, so raise the heat lamp a little

If possible, its a good idea too if you have more than 3 or 4 chicks, to use something like cardboard to round off the corners of the brooder.  Then if something frightens the chicks and they run to the corners, they can't suffocate each other.  They will climb on top of each other to try to get into a corner and the poor little things underneath get suffocated to death.

Joy did get an electric mother hen just in case, but I don't think she ever used it.  They can be good too, as many of them can be higher at the front than the back, and the chicks can go to whichever bit is warmest for them.  But I have never used them, so can't say anymore about that.

[joyfull]

no I never got to use either my electric hen nor my plastic brooder box (swapped them with min for feed after deciding to hatch no more chicks) but they were just here on standby in case a broody decided she no longer wanted to raise her chicks - which has happened to me in the past but luckily I always had another broody hen to take over.