Moving Chick Outside

[Anonymous]

Hello all - I wonder if you can help?

I had some really useful advice from this forum a short while ago ref my single hatched Cochin chick. I'm pleased to say that the chick is doing very well - it will be three weeks old this week and is getting its feathers and appears to be growing well. I have it in a cardboard box with an angle poise light and a 100w bulb at the moment - I would like to know when I can move it to the main hen house?

I had a pair of Partridge Cochins but due to neighbours complaints had to rehouse the Cockerel - so I only have one hen outside and the chick in the utility room so moving the chick outside would give the hen some company. I have an 8'x10' shed with electricity run so I could put up an infrared light out there - would that be ok? Or should I keep the chick indoors under my angle poise for another couple of weeks?

Many thanks,

 

[Tim]

Hi Brahma.

Glad the chick is doing well...

You shouldn't put the chick in with the hen, until she is fully grown and a similar size. She would very likely get pecked or worse and is at risk of picking up disease until the immune system is stronger when she's older.

You really need to keep the chick warm until she's fully feathered. You can gradually wean the chick off the heat lamp bit by bit and then start turning it off for a while during the day. Ideally you should keep the chick in a separate house / run once fully feathered at 5 -6 weeks old until she is a similar size to your hen.

The shed sounds like a plan - just make sure the heat lamp chain is securely fixed to a good beam on the roof - they get very hot and can cause fires if they fall onto bedding. You should also make sure the door is open on sunny days if the shed catches the sun - you don't want to overheat the chick. I made a frame with wire on it that I could fit to one of my shed doors a while ago - It's a potting shed but doubles up as a good sized house if I need to quarantine some birds for a while. - Perhaps this is the answer for the temporary accommodation??!

Tim

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Tim.

I only have the one chicken house - while I understand the risk of disease you mention, would it be ok if I put up a wire partition in there with the chick one side and the hen the other? I could put the infrared above the side where the chick would go? I have put a very strong hook into one of the shed beams and hung the light's chain from that - would that be ok? Also, how far off the shed floor should the light be?

Many thanks,

Andy