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Green Rosie

That wasn't the plan

Having bought 6 x day old chicks today to pop under Mrs Broody she appears t be able to count: one eggs does not make 6 chicks so these fluffy things cannot be mine.

She has killed 4 and I have the remaining two sitting in a basket on the table making one heck of a noise!

Errrm - They have bedding, water and chick crumb but I don't have heat lamp. Any suggestions on what I should do now? I've never brought up 2 chicks before Shocked
colour it green

bum.

you can rig up something with hot water bottles so they have warmth i think or if you have any sinful old style light bulbs you can improvise a lamp



guess she is not so smug after all
Green Rosie

Hot water bottle I can do - how long will they need extra warmth for?
Lorrainelovesplants

suspend a 60w light bulb over them, about 6-9 inches above.
colour it green

Hot water bottle I can do - how long will they need extra warmth for?


depends on how warm it is in your home etc

most people reckon they need heat until 4 weeks old then outside from 5 weeks

my 2 week olds are only having the heat lamp on at night at the mo and seem to be doing fine - but there are 15 of them, so they generate a fair bit of warmth

other ideas - if you have a heated propagator or one of those mats for brewing wine on
Green Rosie

They are currently in the dehydrator that OH had made with a 60w bulb keeping them warm. If they survive tonight we can rig up something more permanent tomorrow .... and I could even buy a few more to give extra body warmth and to justify the leccy cost Wink
Shan

I have heard of people using one of those stringy mop heads suspended and apparently the chicks gather under as though it were mother hen.
joanne

Link to the cold brooder thread, if you fancy doing that Rosie

http://forum.downsizer.net/viewtopic.php?t=62235&highlight=cold+brooder
Green Rosie

They currently appear to be happy in the drying box and a friend said she can lend me her heat lamp and chick/cat-proof cage. She lives very close to where there is a market tomorrow so I do think I may get some more (for communal warmth).
Minamoo

I used a cold brooder with my two newest babies and it worked exceptionally well. Only problems are:

1. If you use cut up strips of towel, they shed threads that nearly strangled my chicks 3 times and got wrapped around wings, feet, etc.

2. If you only have a few chicks in there, they don't generate enough body heat to keep them warm so you have to put in a heat source. I used a hot water bottle and it worked brilliantly.

I kept them in the kitchen and they were in here for about 8 weeks. After a couple of weeks they preferred to just perch on top of the cold brooder and very rarely used it but it was still there in case they wanted it. We removed it after 3 weeks as they had totally stopped using it by that point
colour it green

They currently appear to be happy in the drying box and a friend said she can lend me her heat lamp and chick/cat-proof cage. She lives very close to where there is a market tomorrow so I do think I may get some more (for communal warmth).


seems like a plan - shame the broody did not work out (we tend to sneak them under after dark - might be a thought for next time)

but buying lots more now makes sense - if you are going to have the cost of the heat, and the hassle of looking after them, you might as well do it for lots. Green Rosie

Last year she accepted the chicks when I popped them under in the daytime but she obviously was in a different mindset this year.

And that was my thoughts with regard to getting more - in for a penny, in for a pound as it were. colour it green

aw shame - a tried and tested broody too - just goes to show it can always go wrong.

still its only a few weeks. and then it will be hot and summery

hahahahah earthmamma

Are these the ones you are rearing for the pot? Hope all goes well! Smile Green Rosie

I got the chicks to raise as meat birds and make up for the shortfall in our duck numbers this year. Guess if I get more tomorrow we'll be eating lots of chicken soon! Green Rosie

The morning after update - both chicks are alive and kicking. Smaller son got up early and cleaned them out and fed them (putting them in my best basket whilst he did so Shocked Laughing ) and I am off to another market this morning to get them some company. Hey ho, just call me Mother Hen!

And Mrs Broody/Murderous Hen has been shut in a separate arc until she gets over feeling broody. She is NOT a happy hen!
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