any chicken owners here? newbie

[mike033089]

so long story short the wife came home with 6 chicks from tractor supply yesterday with the whole brooding set up.  now i have 6 to 8 weeks to get an outside home ready for them.  our property has a nice 2 stall barn (with water and electric) and an open work room about 100' from the house.  i was thinking of converting the one stall into the "coop" and attaching a run to the outside.  (she is totally set on them living in the barn where she thinks they will be safer from a bear vs in a coop)  i googled plans on converting  a stall into a coop and got the idea down to make nesting boxes, perches for the roost and will hardware cloth the one stall up and above and totally seal it off.  with the run i plan to cut a door for them through the barn into a run that has post set in concrete and hardware cloth everything including a bit into the ground and then out away from the run to prevent digging by predators.  half the run will have a roof the other half with be open to the elements.  eventually we plan to free range them most of the time.  the biggest issue we seem to be having is the whole "keeping them warm"  from what i have read they survive just fine like every animal in nature.  the heat lamp idea i am not keen on as the whole burning the barn down thing.  any tips or suggestions for me in regards to converting the barn, building a run, heat or no heat, or anything that could be helpful as first time chicken owners. also feel free to post up some pics, i would love to see what works for you guys!  Thank you in advanced

[rgw]

you only need the heat lamp until they are fully feathered , after that no lamp. i usually have 30+ birds in the winter and no heat, also if they are use to heat all winter then you loose power then they wont be use to the cold and die. but untill they are fully feathered they need to stay in temps around 90 degrees. you will want a water warmer in the winter though to keep it from freezing, start with a 40 lb bag of chick starter then go to grower, at this point you might as well continue the grower till spring before going to layer feed.

[mike033089]

thank you.  it does seem like this will turn into another hobby almost.  

[NJArcher]

Don't go nuts on the barn they don't need anything too special.  They will decide where they want to roost and lay and in my experience it's usually not where you planned them to.   Most of the breeds you get from TSC are cold hearty and you will not need heat.  My Rhode Island reds, Wyandottes, Black stars, and Barred rocks stay out in the goat shed (not enclosed) all winter with no issue.  You only need heat when they are chicks and there are guidelines on reducing the heat every week as they get older I just can't remember them right now.  This time of the year its really not critical.  With regard to free ranging during the day, I have tried it several times over the years but once the predators find them they will hit your flock like a buffet and 6 birds won't last long!  I have lost too many birds trying to free range and now keep them in a high fenced run with the goats.  Wherever you keep the feed for them do your best to make that area as rat proof as possible.  Once a rat finds a food source and moves in and starts reproducing it's almost impossible to get rid of them and they'll be stealing your feed and eggs.  Good luck

[Live to Hunt]

No but my friend is and I am rewarded by fresh eggs. 

[ratherbhunting]

50 minutes ago, NJArcher said:

Don't go nuts on the barn they don't need anything too special.  They will decide where they want to roost and lay and in my experience it's usually not where you planned them to.   Most of the breeds you get from TSC are cold hearty and you will not need heat.  My Rhode Island reds, Wyandottes, Black stars, and Barred rocks stay out in the goat shed (not enclosed) all winter with no issue.  You only need heat when they are chicks and there are guidelines on reducing the heat every week as they get older I just can't remember them right now.  This time of the year its really not critical.  With regard to free ranging during the day, I have tried it several times over the years but once the predators find them they will hit your flock like a buffet and 6 birds won't last long!  I have lost too many birds trying to free range and now keep them in a high fenced run with the goats.  Wherever you keep the feed for them do your best to make that area as rat proof as possible.  Once a rat finds a food source and moves in and starts reproducing it's almost impossible to get rid of them and they'll be stealing your feed and eggs.  Good luck

I agree with everything NJArcher said. Every time I free range my chickens they get eaten up real quick. 

[mike033089]

thank you!

 

[nb6624]

Dont count your eggs too soon. Most likely you have 5 roosters.  Been there done that