We just got a batch of ten baby chicks! Two days old and they are already having a blast climbing and jumping off a little rock and sticks. This batch are all females, and are a random variety of “exotic” chickens. When their real feathers grow in it’ll be fun to figure out what breeds we got!
They are just in an XL dog crate with foil insulation around the bottom edge, and a red heat lamp hanging from the top of the crate. I don’t know if the foil actually helps retain any heat, but it does keep the chicks from escaping. It’s a high security henitentiary.
The heater is necessary until they’re properly feathered, they need to stay around 95°F right now. That will be adjusted down around 5° a week until they are comfortable at room temperature. I don’t actually know how long they would last without it, but it’s obvious when they are miserable and cold. They all snuggle up together in a little clump and when they first came home they were very lethargic until they warmed up. It was about a 4 hour journey for them from the hatchery to home without heat.