Leaving home for 36 hours. What should I do with my chicks?

[SilverBirds]

View attachment 3826983
Heres a picture of the brooder

That brooder is way too small, and they do not need a heat lamp anymore. Is this your first batch of chicks or will you be integrating them with an existing flock? If this is your first batch, do you have a coop yet?

 

[NatJ]

View attachment 3826983
Heres a picture of the brooder

If you can, I would provide a MUCH bigger brooder before you go.

But if you can't do that, just fill the food and water and hope for the best, then check as soon as you get home.

Whenever you can manage it, giving them a bigger space will help them get used to cooler temperatures, so they can be ready to move outside sooner. When they have to stay under that heat lamp, they have to put up with being hot all the time. If they have a great big space, they can run off to play in the cool area, then come back to the heat to warm up. That helps them develop a tolerance for cooler temperatures as fast as they safely can.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I was hoping to see a way to hang something over the waterer that would stop them from getting over it to poop in it but they could still drink. I don't see a way with that. Even if you could hang something that is the wrong kind of waterer for something over it that would work.

They should be OK in there for 36 hours but I agree, I'd invest some time and effort to get them something bigger real soon. Especially think in terms of them being able to get away from the heat.

That looks like a basement. What temperatures are you seeing there? What are your outside temperatures, especially your lows at night? They probably can go without heat right now in that basement but with you leaving I'd hate to change much right now.

 

[NatJ]

I just remembered another detail:

Give them fresh water and food for the last time at least 10 minutes before you leave, and look at them again before you actually leave.

I've had times that I refilled waterers in a hurry, and it all ran out in the first few minutes (causes: didn't screw it tightly, or did sit it on a slant, or otherwise did something wrong. Always seems to happen when I'm in a hurry or distracted, never at other times.)

Checking again a few minutes after the last water refresh is a way to catch that kind of oops. And another 10 minutes for them to poop in the water is not going to make a big difference over the next 24 hours.

 

[Potato and Eilonwy]

That brooder is way too small, and they do not need a heat lamp anymore. Is this your first batch of chicks or will you be integrating them with an existing flock? If this is your first batch, do you have a coop yet?

This is not my first batch of chicks, its my 3rd that is alive atleast, there are countless batches I have had that we lost to predators before we got goats. We used this brooder for every batch of chicks we have had, and I am planning on moving them outside tomorrow night, they survived our trip btw

 

[Potato and Eilonwy]

If you can, I would provide a MUCH bigger brooder before you go.

But if you can't do that, just fill the food and water and hope for the best, then check as soon as you get home.

Whenever you can manage it, giving them a bigger space will help them get used to cooler temperatures, so they can be ready to move outside sooner. When they have to stay under that heat lamp, they have to put up with being hot all the time. If they have a great big space, they can run off to play in the cool area, then come back to the heat to warm up. That helps them develop a tolerance for cooler temperatures as fast as they safely can.

They survived the trip and we disabled the heat lamp before we went. I am planning on moving them outside tomorrow night, so you dont need to worry about them exploding from too-small-brooder-iosis
Thanks for your help btw

 

[Potato and Eilonwy]

I was hoping to see a way to hang something over the waterer that would stop them from getting over it to poop in it but they could still drink. I don't see a way with that. Even if you could hang something that is the wrong kind of waterer for something over it that would work.

They should be OK in there for 36 hours but I agree, I'd invest some time and effort to get them something bigger real soon. Especially think in terms of them being able to get away from the heat.

That looks like a basement. What temperatures are you seeing there? What are your outside temperatures, especially your lows at night? They probably can go without heat right now in that basement but with you leaving I'd hate to change much right now.

They survived the trip and we disabled the heat lamp before we went. I am planning on moving them outside tomorrow night, so you dont need to worry about them because of the small brooder
We turned up the heat before we left. They were fine while we were gone btw

 

[NatJ]

They survived the trip

Glad to hear it

 

[Karen Glatz]

teach them how to use a water bottle with chicken nipples. Graduate to a bucket with chicken nipples or cups.

Water should never be on the ground in a pan. Dirty and lots of extra work trying to keep it clean.

 

[jeepone]

Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I would get a reliable sitter than can come in a couple times a day or stay home. I always take travel plans into consideration when getting or hatching chicks and have cancelled trips before.