Fall Chicks Make Spring Layers!

Did you know that early-mid fall is actually my favorite time of year to raise chicks? 🐥🍁

🌸 In the spring, it’s often rainy, muddy, humid, etc. This can make transitioning chicks to the outdoors much harder than it needs to be. Mud is a breeding ground for lots of bacteria and chicks are typically more susceptible to getting Coccidia/Coccidiosis in these conditions. You will also have to wait longer for them to be older and more adapt to handle rain, because if they have any “baby fluff” left, it will not keep them dry enough, which will make them too cold. It can also quickly make them sick.

🌞 In the summer, it can actually be too hot for chicks. If you’re brooding indoors, it’s not as much of an issue. However, you will still need to be careful when putting chicks outside as they still cannot regulate their body temp well, which means they can also get too hot! Brooding outdoors, regardless of the season, requires a watchful eye on the brooder conditions. This is true especially in the summertime. For example, you may want to turn off any brooder plates or heat lamps during the day when it’s hot out, to avoid overheating.

❄️ In the winter, it’s very difficult (or impossible) to keep chicks warm enough if you’re brooding outdoors. You certainly cannot use a brooder that is open to the elements in any way. Indoor brooding during the winter is most definitely your best bet. It is difficult to transition chicks to the outdoors in the winter because they are not yet well equipped to keep themselves warm. They also may not roost in a warm place, because they don’t know how. This can cause them to get too cold. Going from a nice warm brooder out to the bitter cold can easily shock young chicks. I prefer to avoid raising chicks in the winter, unless it is with the odd broody hen, as she will be able to teach the chicks everything they need and provide a “mobile heater”.

🍂 In the fall, you typically start out with warmer weather, but not scorching hot. If you’re brooding outdoors, it’ll be much easier to keep you brooder at a steady temp. By the time the chicks are ready to go outside, it will be a near perfect temp for them. Not too hot, where they would risk overheating, and not too cold where they will not be able to keep up body temp. You also typically don’t have to deal with as much rain either. The outdoors are much more forgiving to young birds in the fall.

While you certainly can raise chicks any time of year (trust me, as a certified crazy chicken lady, I have done it all), I think it’s important to take the above into consideration. ☺️