# I am VERY irritated with Backyard CHickens



## logansmommy7 (Nov 11, 2009)

I have posted questions about meat birds (which I expect a shipment of this week) and NO ONE responds...no one. Since this is a great message board I'll ask here...does anyone know how long to keep broilers under a heat lamp?? This will be my first time with meat birds. I know that generally they grow faster than regular chickens. Thanks!


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## RunAround (Feb 17, 2008)

This time of year they need a light till they have all their feathers... or a good broody hen.


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## Allipoe (Sep 8, 2010)

Yeaup, basically any chicken needs to stay under the lamp, or with a warmth source, until they are fully fledged. Only then can they regulate their body temperature themselves better. Make sure not to broil (har har) them though, so keep moving it back gradually the bigger they get, and the more feathers they get. Or move it to the side, and they will lay where they are most comfortable.


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## farmergal (Jun 19, 2009)

I am so sad about BYC. It used to be a great place and I knew everybody, and always someone would answer your questions... now nobody does, and I hardly see any "friendly faces" when I go there!

Which is why my message board time is now spent at TGS, where y'all are around to help me out whenever I'm freaking out  

Ditto what the others said about chickens... Although, I always watch mine and let them "tell me" when they're ready. (If they're hanging out away from the heat lamp and I turn it off and they don't huddle together for heat, I figure they're fine.)


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## logansmommy7 (Nov 11, 2009)

Gotcha. Thanks guys. I kind of knew that but this is only the second time I've raised peeps. Thank you again for the support and maybe I was not patient enough with BYC...but it sure seems some posts get instant attention! Again-love TGS!


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

thats sad about BYC but maybe in time it will come back more to life again with friendly helpful people.

My limited experience with chickens (my mom has them) is that we would keep raising the heat lamp higher and higher as they aged and if we saw them laying out away from the light. We used cardboard boxes and would open the flaps as they got older so more of the heat was able to escape.


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## Polarhug (Jul 1, 2010)

We raise our light each week to lower the temp 5 degrees. (From 90 starting out). 
And do that until the outside temp matches the brooder, or until they get big chick feathers whichever comes first.


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## rkalgren (Sep 22, 2008)

Polarhug said:


> We raise our light each week to lower the temp 5 degrees. (From 90 starting out).
> And do that until the outside temp matches the brooder, or until they get big chick feathers whichever comes first.


Great advice. Make sure the light does not cover the whole brooder. That way, the chicks can move out of it if they get too hot.


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## Mon Reve Farm (Jun 25, 2010)

Agree with Polarhug and rkalgren...

Set it up so it is easy to adjust the heat lamp as necessary either due to time of day of varying temperatures.

It's very important until they get their "shoulder pads" the feathering where the wings connect to the body and the top of the wings. 

As you mentioned they will grow faster then your typical layers or some of your heritage/specialty breeds. But starting in the fall can impact your heat lamp usage verses spring/summer brooding.

I also found that when we had the mixed batch in the brooder I had to provide feed more often. The meat chicks ate more than the layer/heritage breed chicks.

The only other thing was I had to expand their space sooner verses the previous batch when I only had heritage layers. Again since they grow faster I had to add a small pen area for them during the day but then closed them into the brooder at night.


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## myfainters (Oct 30, 2009)

We hatch out about 80 chicks a year.... (all breeds) our brooder pens are big enough that they have food, water and a small play area on half and the heat lamp/sleeping area over the other half. The brooder walls are 2 ft tall... when they are old enough to perch on the top and keep escaping they lose the lamp.... 1 week later they go outside.


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## logansmommy7 (Nov 11, 2009)

Any ideas with other good chicken message boards?? I'm just done with that one. It is unfortunate.


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## Mon Reve Farm (Jun 25, 2010)

I participate in this one from time to time:

Homestead poultry - group from homeschoolers/4H to experienced poultry keepers:
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/Homestead_Poultry/


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## mistyblue (Nov 13, 2008)

You know kinda OT but Backyard Chickens is how I found TGS. I was browsing around on there and someone mentioned this site and I have been here ever since.

I hate to hear that it is not the same, they had some really good info on there.


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## logansmommy7 (Nov 11, 2009)

farmergal said:


> Which is why my message board time is now spent at TGS, where y'all are around to help me out whenever I'm freaking out


I must say-TGS is a good place to be if you need assistance in ANY way. :applaud:


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## jduwall (Aug 7, 2009)

I understand about no response,,,I totally love this website...great people. i agree with others, I have chickens for years and with the weather likes this they will need very little heat, you will know if they are too hot, they pant and move away from the light. as soon as they have their feathers they are good to go...good luck...chickens are so fun..mine are all free range...it is like an easter egg hunt every day


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## peggy (Aug 11, 2010)

Something that happened to me one year when I raised some chicks. I used a regular white heat lamp but the chicks just seemed to be crazy. Peeping and running around like they were on a mission. I didn't have it too close but they just couldn't seem to settle down. I changed the heat lamp to a red one and they immediately conked out. Then they seemed normal after that. Don't know what happened there but it was the first year I raised chicks. I think the intense light was too much for them.....who knows.....


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## rkalgren (Sep 22, 2008)

Red lights are the way to go. Chicks can not see the red light and it does not keep them awake at night. White lights can make chicks crazy from lack of sleep.


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## logansmommy7 (Nov 11, 2009)

The heat lamp I own (just one) is a red one. It worked with the batch of chicks I got earlier this year. They turned out fine. It was a bit less than 25 (somewhere around 17) but they were great with one heat lamp (red, of course).


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