Reasons for Tossing Out Your Indoor Brooder and Start Raising Your Chicks Outdoors

Really interesting to see the evolution of chicken raising! I agree about brooding in cooler temps. We started ours upstairs for a few days while they got their sea legs, then moved them down to our 50 degree basement (with a heat plate of course). They did outstanding! Feathered very quickly, and were able to start enjoying the outdoors by 3 weeks. We'll be attempting chick integration next spring, and I'm going to utilize the advice in this article (do it early, escape portals, etc.)

I know this is an old article but im definitely considering changing things up for my 5 day old chicks and perhaps getting them outside with the big girls sooner than anticipated. Great article!

Wow!! This is the best information about brooding out there! Amazing!!!!

After reading your article I went out to my chicken run and decided it was a good time to see how the chicks would do outside, we are between 70's during the day and getting down to 50's at night. we had a small coop that that the Big Girls don't use any more. Since we only have the 2 chicks it will be just the right size for them and it is completely secure and it is inside the run so the rest of the girls can see them but not touch.

This is a really good idea. The chicks are always scared when I reach my hand in their brooder (the predator mimicking is so true). I always try to reach in as slow as possible, but it's pretty hard to catch chicks when you're in slow motion .

totally made sense to me. I will possibly be raising chicks soon as I acquired a Roo.

Wonderfully said!

Excellent article. Very well thought out and explained.

Brilliant article. This is so helpful in rationalizing how to grow chicks up in and out of the brooder. Lots of good strategies here.

I'm starting with my first 5 chicks in YEARS and your essay has fueled my ambition and excitement to raise them your way! Makes so much sense!

Very helpful article for someone considering outside brooding.

How do I share this to my begginner chicken groups! Thank you for sharing your moxy, wisdom and exprience!!

Hands down best informative post out there!

I've raised chicks I bought at the feed store for 10+ years. They all ended up terrified of me as adults when I fed them in their pen. Now I know why. I will try to copy azygous' chick raising methods that work so well. I want my chicks to trust me and not run for their lives when I go to feed them.

Fully agree.

That was a wonderful article!

Fantastic. I raised a few batches of week old chicks in the house. The last batch I made a new brooder in the garage- hardware cloth sides. These chicks are just like yours and now also thriving in my barn grow up coop. I can't wait to read the heating pad thing because that's what I've been using! I wrap it in a plastic table cloth fresh for each batch, and tape it inside the roof of a shoe box. They love the warm cave. This really affirmed my gut instincts and I'll continue to raise bold, friendly, and healthy chicks in this manner.

This is wonderful!!! It totally backs up my intuition about the indoor brooders... I really hate that my lil chickies aren't exposed to anything but the brooder and our hands diving in. I tried different things to enrich my big chicks before they moved to the coop, which helped a ton, but this article is hands down the BEST way I can see to raise chicks without a mama hen!! I'm going to clean my coop and get them set up right now!!

I just love this article and have read it several times over the years. Thank you @azygous !

I’m raising my third set of chicks up in Portland, ME. First mail-order babies, so started under a lamp. By day 4 we were taking field trips out to the big girl yard, supervised and with a baby-sized run + heat plate.

By day 6 (today) they’re happily outside all day and sleeping inside at night.

In another few days, I think they’ll be outdoor chicks

Thank you!!