Last night, the ten chicks were all piled on top of each other under the warmth of the little light that I had on top of the brooder. Obviously, the level of the Brooder Warmer (EcoGlow) was too low for them now to comfortably fit under. I popped it up one level and we were good to go. On the other hand, the first brooder box for them was only 4 square feet (21" x 28") and they were getting quite cramped in there too now that they have doubled in size.
Thankfully, we still have 10 little fluff balls in feather development. I put together a quick large brooder and put it on a folding work table. The brooder is 26" wide and 68" long for a total of 12 square feet. The walls are 18" high so it was essential that I place some baby gates on top of the brooder. I parceled off 2/3 of the brooder (to 8 square feet). This new space is giving them way more room to stretch their wings and do a little practice flight.
We are done using the towels for flooring. I put in some of the shredded recycled paper crinkles from the pet store for them. They pick up the paper strips, but they don't eat it. They are "scratching" the floor and moving the paper around, then pecking on the floor, just like chickens. They also nestle into the paper like a little nest. But this will be way too expensive to continue to use. When I run out of the paper bedding, I will switch to something else. Probably wood shavings. I'm just not comfortable yet using the shavings.
Thankfully, we still have 10 little fluff balls in feather development. I put together a quick large brooder and put it on a folding work table. The brooder is 26" wide and 68" long for a total of 12 square feet. The walls are 18" high so it was essential that I place some baby gates on top of the brooder. I parceled off 2/3 of the brooder (to 8 square feet). This new space is giving them way more room to stretch their wings and do a little practice flight.
We are done using the towels for flooring. I put in some of the shredded recycled paper crinkles from the pet store for them. They pick up the paper strips, but they don't eat it. They are "scratching" the floor and moving the paper around, then pecking on the floor, just like chickens. They also nestle into the paper like a little nest. But this will be way too expensive to continue to use. When I run out of the paper bedding, I will switch to something else. Probably wood shavings. I'm just not comfortable yet using the shavings.
I did some one-on-one social time with each of them this afternoon. A little egg yolk mash does wonders for making friends. :)
Here are some better pictures of the baby orloffs at 15 days of age.
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