Brooder ideas

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kegs

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Has anyone any innovative ideas for something I can use as a large brooder. I've got plastic storage containers for when the chicks first hatch but need something for 3 weeks+ for potentially 18 chicks, large enough to go in a garage BUT it has to be rat proof.
Thank you.
 
Doesn't sound very simple to do Kegs. Would it be easier to make the garage rat proof first? It's very difficult to make anything rat proof and at 3 weeks the chicks will be vunerable to even medium sized rats.

I ended up making rearing run /coop units for ours from 6 weeks to 12 but they were too small for more than 8 chicks. Couldn't lift anything bigger.

Could you suspend anything from the ceiling?
 
hi all one good thing you can use as a brooder is an old plastic header tank the bigger the better . hope this helps uncle fox
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charliefox said:
hi all one good thing you can use as a brooder is an old plastic header tank the bigger the better . hope this helps uncle fox
.
Click to expand...

Covered over with small mesh wire to keep out the rats ?
 
Thanks all.

Chrismahon - I've tried making it rat proof but we can't find the point of entry and I'm sure it's still around. It attacked one of our chicks who I nursed back to health but lost two toes so I'm reluctant to get the incubator out until I'm certain any chicks will be safe in the garage. I could suspend something from the wooden ceiling joists so long as it wasn't too heavy.

Charliefox - I'll certainly investigate the idea of header tanks. Thanks for that.

Chuck - I'll definitely be using wire mesh over the top of any brooder.
 
You might be able to make some wooden frames from 2''X1'' planed timber or similar, and fill them in with small-gauge (1/2'') mesh. Then, on the inside, fix sheets of cardboard or whatever you had handy, to retain the heat and prevent it leaking out of the sides. Then fix the panels together strongly, either with hinges, or just tie them with wire or nylon cord. Make a mesh panel, or a pair of hinged mesh panels, to cover the roof, and when in place, put a couple of heavy bricks on the corners to hold the whole frame down so the rats can't get under the edges. Presumably the floor is concrete, so as long as they couldn't get under the sides they wouldn't be able to dig their way in? You would need to make the sides low enough so that the heat lamp could be suspended above it in the early stages when it needs to be quite low, as the lamp wouldn't go through the panels over the top. Or just put in an electric hen of course.
If you browsed round the recycling centre skips, you might be able to find some kind of materials which are already a solid surface which could be used as one or more of the sides, eg an old door or cupboard fronts etc. Or place the brooder so that one side, and maybe even two, is formed by the sides of the garage walls, and then enclose it with two more sides to make a rectangular one, or one long side (old door?) for a triangle.
 
Lightest structural stuff I can think of is plasterboard or hollow plastic sheet. Couple of wooden batterns to support it tied to ceiling. I use hot water header tanks for things but they are not that big and won't get you past a few weeks with 18 chicks.

If you can't find an entry point Kegs it is probably coming in from above. Anything outside it could climb up?
 
I have seen a rat climb up a vertical breezeblock garage wall using nothing but the brick. Be vigilant!
 
Thanks Marigold. DIY is not a forte in our house but I'll look at doors and cupboards with a view to adapting them.

Just read that rats are excellent climbers and can easily climb a vertical brick wall. Great.

Would a rat be able to chew through wood and Chrismahon's suggested plasterboard and hollow plastic sheeting? I had only used several layers of corrugated cardboard which was working fine until 'rat-gate'. I'd only just cleaned the chicks and replaced the cardboard but about an hour later there was the most distressed screaming from one of the chicks and the rat had chewed through all of the layers and was trying to drag the chick through the hole by its leg. I'm not taking any chances so need to find an alternative before I incubate. I was also thinking of a used 'Dolav' type container but can't find any that are cheaper than £50, and someone in US uses a metal animal pen but I can't find something similar in UK yet. Getting brain ache now. :roll:
 
Whatever you use, if you can face it with 1/2'' mesh it will be ratproof. Larger mesh might mean a rat could chew a hole and get through. i wouldn't think hollow plastic sheeting would be a good idea on its own, but as a rigid heat-retaining layer it would be fine if reinforced (as might thick corrugated cardboard even.)
Or, of course, consider making two smaller brooders out of some kind of ready-made tank, or the sort of second-hand guinea pig cage with a plastic base and a wire top. Try Freecycle for ideas?
Or do two smaller hatches, using one smaller brooder? how many are you going to incubate? If you set 18, you may not get that many chicks of course. Do you really need that many all at once?
If you plan to do repeated large hatches it's going to be worthwhile to get or make a suitable brooder. If it's just a one-off, maybe approach it another way.
 
Can't see a rat easily chewing through plasterboard Kegs. Whilst it is soft it is also very dry so a mouth full of that -ugh! Bit like trying to eat 4 cream crackers in a minute without a drink.

You could always set traps around it baited with peanut butter or chocolate drops.
 
Thankyou everyone for taking the time and trouble to post. I've now got lots of ideas (and jobs for OH) so many thanks.
 
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