Latest / Valley Hatchery Podcast / Chicken Support Insights - Episode 22: When Chicks Are Ready to Leave the Brooder

Transcript

Chicken Support Insights - Episode 22: When Chicks Are Ready to Leave the Brooder · Valley Hatchery Podcast

• 0:08
  Cortney: Hey, welcome back to the podcast.
• 0:10
  Cortney: I'm Courtney and I'm here with Connie.
• 0:13
  Cortney: Today we're talking about when chicks are actually ready to leave the brooder and how to make that transition without stressing out your birds.
• 0:22
  Connie: Yeah, that is one of the moments where a lot of people go off age alone.
• 0:27
  Connie: And that's usually where things go wrong.
• 0:30
  Connie: All right, let's get into it.
• 0:32
  Cortney: Connie, what actually tells you chicks are ready to leave the brooder beyond just their age?
• 0:38
  Connie: So there's many factors, Courtney, but it's not the deciding factor.
• 0:44
  Connie: What you really want to look at is feather development first.
• 0:48
  Connie: If they're still mostly covered and down, they're not ready.
• 0:53
  Connie: And by around five to six weeks, most chicks are fully feathered, and that's what gives them their insulation.
• 1:01
  Connie: That's when they can start handling cooler temperatures.
• 1:04
  Connie: Then you have to look at behavior.
• 1:07
  Connie: Are they active, moving around confidently, eating normally, not bunching up like they're cold?
• 1:14
  Connie: And then temperature matters.
• 1:16
  Connie: If your nights are still dropping too low, even fully feathered chicks can struggle.
• 1:22
  Connie: So it's really those three things together: feathers, behavior, and weather.
• 1:28
  Cortney: Right.
• 1:28
  Cortney: That's great, great points.
• 1:30
  Cortney: And that makes sense.
• 1:31
  Cortney: It's less about hitting a date and more about actually reading your birds and seeing what they're telling you, which actually ties into our blog, When Can Chicks Move to the Coop?
• 1:42
  Cortney: It walks through that week by week so you can really see what to expect.
• 1:46
  Connie: What does a realistic timeline look like from brooder to outdoor transition, Courtney?
• 1:54
  Cortney: Great question, Connie.
• 1:55
  Cortney: Yeah, so early on, like week one and two, they should be fully in the brooder, no outdoor exposure at all.
• 2:03
  Cortney: They need that consistent heat just so they don't get upset or stressed out.
• 2:08
  Cortney: Then around week three or four, you can start doing short outdoor visits, like taking them out for some grass time.
• 2:16
  Cortney: If it's warm and calm, nothing long, just letting them, you know, a little bit of experience of the outdoors.
• 2:23
  Cortney: Now, by week five or six, that's when most birds are ready to transition, assuming they're feathered and your weather is stable.
• 2:33
  Cortney: And something important here is not jumping straight from brooder to full tide.
• 2:38
  Cortney: You want to ease them into it.
• 2:39
  Cortney: So just having them go outside for that little bit of short experience, what it's like to be out there, short visits, then longer ones, then eventually full days before they can fully move out.
• 2:52
  Connie: Absolutely right on, Courtney.
• 2:55
  Connie: That gradual approach makes a big difference.
• 2:58
  Connie: Skipping that step is where people run into problems.
• 3:02
  Cortney: You're right, Connie.
• 3:04
  Cortney: So, how should someone prepare their coop before moving chicks outside?
• 3:09
  Connie: Okay, so the first thing the coop needs to be ready before the birds ever go in.
• 3:15
  Connie: That's a big one.
• 3:17
  Connie: You want proper ventilation, dry bedding, and everything secured.
• 3:24
  Connie: One big thing is predator protection.
• 3:27
  Connie: It's very huge because young birds are way more vulnerable.
• 3:33
  Connie: Then make sure your feeders and waterers are easy for them to access.
• 3:38
  Connie: You don't want them struggling to eat and drink in a new space.
• 3:43
  Connie: And honestly, just walk through like you're the chick.
• 3:47
  Connie: If it's drafty, if there's something that could get in, you've got to fix it.
• 3:53
  Cortney: Yeah, that's right.
• 3:54
  Cortney: You want to make sure they're protected.
• 3:56
  Cortney: It's a good way to look at it.
• 3:57
  Cortney: Pretend like you are them.
• 3:59
  Cortney: A solid setup up front makes that transition way more smoother and your bird more comfortable.
• 4:06
  Connie: So, Courtney, what is the gradual transition?
• 4:09
  Connie: What makes it so important when moving chicks out?
• 4:14
  Cortney: Thanks for asking, Connie.
• 4:15
  Cortney: Yeah, so great going straight from a warm brooder to outdoor conditions is a big shock to their system and they can stress out easily.
• 4:25
  Cortney: So gradual exposure helps build tolerance.
• 4:28
  Cortney: You're basically letting them adjust to temperature changes, new sounds, new space, all of it.
• 4:35
  Cortney: Even going outside is a brighter atmosphere.
• 4:38
  Cortney: So we know transitioning from indoors to outdoors can be a lot.
• 4:43
  Cortney: So that can look like short outdoor time at first, then increasing it while also slowly reducing brooder heat.
• 4:52
  Cortney: And if you skip that, that's when you see stress, slower growth, or even losses.
• 4:57
  Cortney: And we don't want that.
• 4:58
  Cortney: So it's really about giving them time to adapt instead of forcing them into the outdoor coop.
• 5:06
  Connie: Absolutely, Courtney.
• 5:08
  Connie: Exactly.
• 5:08
  Connie: Slowing down here actually saves you problems.
• 5:12
  Connie: So, Courtney, hopefully this gives our customers a clearer idea of when chicks actually are ready to leave the brooder.
• 5:23
  Connie: It's not just age, it's feathers, behavior, and stable weather all working together.
• 5:30
  Connie: If you're getting close to that stage, take a minute and look at your setup and your birds before making the move.
• 5:38
  Cortney: And if you want a visual breakdown, check out our blog, When Can Chicks Move to the Coop.
• 5:43
  Cortney: It walks through the timeline and readiness checklist step by step.
• 5:48
  Cortney: I want to thank everyone for listening, and we will catch you on the next episode.
• 5:52
  Cortney: Bye for now.
• 5:53
  Cortney: Bye.