We bought our first chicks this year, and it feels like we are diving into this huge unknown world of chickens. Neither my husband or myself has any experience with this, so it was a little scary to take it on, but we are in it to win it now!

It was a long road to get here. We did a lot of planning and learned along the way. In this post, I hope to share with you this process. It is not advice (ha!) I am not an expert by any means, but I am SURE that there is someone else out there who has an interest in this and feels completely clueless, just as I did a few months ago.

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Research

The research started quite a while ago. Doing this way in advance really helped me get over the hump of being too scared and it allowed me to gradually gain knowledge in caring for chickens at a slow pace.

I started by finding people I enjoyed watching on YouTube. Seeing these people take care of their chickens in-action was so helpful and provided a great visual for what I would possibly be doing in the future. Everyone has their own tastes in videos, but a couple accounts I found the most helpful were:

• Oak Abode (She is super easy to listen to and has TONS of videos about chickens and gardening and more! She also has a blog)
• Stoney Ridge Farmer is another great one. I only watched a couple, but he definitely seemed like he knew what he was doing.

Online research is always a plus, but it can be very overwhelming…so many different opinions and ideas – it’s hard to sort through. For this reason, I love a good book! This allows me to have all the information I need in one place. I have two AMAZING books that I refer to often:

• The Beginner’s Guide to Raising Chickens by Anne Kuo – I loved reading about how chickens changed this woman’s life (seriously!) and it even has coop plans inside! This was super helpful as we designed our own coop (more on this later) and we could refer to her plans for guidance.
• A Kid’s Guide to Keeping Chickens by Melissa Caughney – Well, it’s a guide for kids, but it’s been SUPER helpful for me as a grown woman. This book is fantastic. There are activities, crafts, and recipes throughout (using eggs, not chickens!). It’s fun to look at and easy to follow.

Plan for your coop – Buy or Build

We went back and forth about this. I was afraid to take on a big project and lumber prices were going up. I had my eyes set on this cute little coop at Tractor Supply and figured it would be perfect. For about $500, it felt like a good deal. Then, I saw it in a YouTube video and changed my mind.

It looked so tiny! I mean it obviously works otherwise they wouldn’t sell it and people wouldn’t buy it! However, it’s not what I wanted for my chickens. I knew I couldn’t let them free range all the time, so I wanted something roomy, and a pre-made coop in my budget did NOT fit this criteria.

This encouraged us to build our own. My husband designed it and built it himself. If you want to talk budget, it was a little more than what I hoped to spend on the Tractor Supply version. Our coop plus the run was a little over $700. With that being said, it is probably four times the size of the one I was going to buy and it will most definitely outlast it.

Now, I realize building your own coop might not be your cup of tea, so obviously do what’s best for you. I hope by laying out our thought process, you might be able to feel peace about what your decision is. Making the decision to build our own was a scary one, but I’m so glad we did.

Supplies Needed for Chicks: Container (Brooder)

You’ll need a few things before you actually bring the chicks home. First you need something to put them in. We bought a black container from Lowe’s, and it turned out to be too small. So I found a container in my house that was bigger and we threw that together last minute.

Be sure to make a plan for the lid. We used hard wire mesh and cut it the right size to fit over the top. This was the cheapest and easiest for us. It does not look fancy, but it works great!

Beware, it will scratch you. I cut my arm up quite a bit at the beginning until I learned how to fight back (ha! just kidding, but seriously, I had to move certain ways in order not to get scraped)

Bedding

Next, you need bedding. We started with pine shavings (turns out, I’m allergic!) then switched to chopped straw. Since we had to switch, I researched a bit about the different types of bedding. Honestly, there’s pros and cons for everything, so pick what your comfortable with. Some things to think about:

• Do you have any allergies that affect your bedding? (Hello, me! This was a surprise)
• What is your budget? Some are more pricey than others
• Are you hoping to compost? (Sand can not be composted)
• Do you have a bedding cleaning preference? (daily/deep-litter)

Knowing the answers to these questions can help you decide what you might want to use.

Heat Source

You will also need a heat source. I really wanted to use a radiant brooder. I got hooked on it, thanks to the YouTube videos I watched. It seemed safer and easier to control. We bought one from Tractor Supply and it is HUGE – so huge it took up the entire brooder. The chicks barely had any room to move, so we caved and bought a heat lamp. It’s worked out great. Lesson learned – size matters.

Be careful when using a heat lamp. Make sure it is far enough away from the bedding and that it is secured to something and won’t fall.

I will say that regulating the temperature was one of the hardest parts for me. It could be the placement of our lamp. We adjusted as we could, but there were times I could tell my chicks were avoiding the lamp, panting, or even huddling up together in a corner. My advice is to make sure you can measure the temperature and be checking on your chicks regularly.

Small Food and Water Containers

Keep in mind the size of your brooder when you purchase these. We made the mistake of picking up the ones we’d use when the chicks move outside, and it is obviously way to large. You can order a set from Amazon like this one, but they are usually cheaper at the feed store.

One thing I quickly realized is that the chicks will constantly kick bedding into the water as well as poop in it. It never fails, I clean it out and they immediately dirty it up. I mention this because as you set up your chick home, you will want to be near a place you can easily dump and refill water. You’ll have to do it all the time!

Chick Starter and Grit

Chick starter is the food for the chicks. I honestly wish I had done a little bit of research on this. When I got to the store, I was at a loss of what to do because there were two types – medicated and non-medicated. I chose non-medicated on a whim, trying to go the more natural route. Then, I got in the car and panic-seached Google if it was the right choice.

I ended up taking the bag back inside and exchanging it for the medicated kind. As with just about everything, there are multiple opinions out there, but you can avoid the confusion by preparing yourself and making your choice before you shop.

One other thing to note, these chicks eat a lot of food! We have 7 chicks and It took them one week to finish a bag. You might want to stock up.

You’ll also want to look into grit. Chick grit helps with digestion, but I hear that some people find it unnecessary. Do your research and make the best choice for your chickens. I am not a chick expert and do not really know the “best” use of this stuff. I’m only influenced by the books I read and the videos I watch.

We did purchase it and started sprinkling it on the food when the chicks were a couple weeks old.

Electrolytes

This is something you can buy to add to the chicks water. It’s supposed to give the chicks a little boost, almost like a Gatorade might for a human. After purchasing some for our chicks, I read the directions, and It turns out the electrolytes have to be mixed in a gallon of water. Well, the waterer is only about a liter, so I decided to mix it in a gallon-sized pitcher and poured from it throughout the day.

Now, I will also say that the directions are very clear that the chicks need access to both fresh water and electrolyte water. Well, we didn’t have two waterers so I alternated regular water and electrolyte water throughout the day. It seemed to work just fine.

Paper Towels

Paper towels have been very helpful for us since bringing the chicks home. An obvious reason would be that they’re great for clean-up purposes. You can also line slippery surfaces so the chicks are safe while walking around.

Gloves

The first time I cleaned bedding, I wished I had gloves. Consider getting some if you want to cover your hands while cleaning. My chicks are 6 weeks old as I get ready to publish this post, and I still haven’t ordered gloves! Yet, every time I clean up their bedding I wish I had them. Just something to think about … 😉

Plastic bags/small trash bag

These are nice to have when you are cleaning out the bedding. If you’re not right by the trashcan, putting the dirty bedding into a plastic bag makes the process a little easier. Don’t feel like you have to go and buy some – save your plastic grocery bags and use those. Depending on what you are using for the bedding, you can easily carry it and dump it into your compost.

We use these trash bags in our bathrooms and they’re a great size – just a little bit bigger than a plastic grocery bag.

Scoop

This is definitely optional, but I preferred having one. You could just scoop bedding out with your hands. (I did do it at the beginning) After a few times, I really wanted something else that I could scoop with. This scoop here is similar to the one I have.

Extra box/Small Kennel

Whenever I need to clean out the brooder, I put all of the chicks into a small kennel we have. I line it with paper towels so they don’t slip. This allows me to do the job quickly while keeping them safe. By two weeks old, they are already trying to fly out, so the fact that they are enclosed in a kennel really helps.

As I mentioned above, this helps me get the job done fast. I don’t leave them in there long. After about five to ten minutes, they are back in their home. You could probably do the same with a box. Just make sure you have a cover for it!

Hand soap and Lotion

Make sure you have plenty of hand soap. I feel like I’m constantly washing my hands – so much so that my knuckles started drying out. Hence, the lotion suggestion. I read a lot about keeping your hands clean and the fact that sometimes the chickens can carry yucky diseases. So the constant hand washing is my preventative. The lotion is more to help my skin!

Brooder Location

This is something you want to think about as you’re setting up. We had thought about keeping them in our shed outside, but we really wanted to be able to see them all the time.

We chose our utility room for the location of the brooder. We have large metal shelves that we adjusted to fit everything perfectly. It’s actually really nice where they are because we can check on them so easily. The biggest benefit is that they are up off the ground safe from toddlers and dogs.

I mentioned in a previous section that being near a water source is also helpful. We are not far from a sink where I can dispose of dirtied water and refill the bottle as much as I need to.

Death of a Chick

It’s sad to think about, but it happens. It happened to us. I really think we could’ve avoided it though so I want to share our story.

When we brought the chicks home and put them in the brooder, there was one that looked bad. It had a hard time getting up and it looked like it was breathing heavy. We gave it some electrolyte water and it perked up a bit. We observed it constantly and saw that it was eating and drinking, but it also isolated itself from the rest of the chicks. After about 4 days, the chick passed away.

It was hard on my kids, and honestly it was hard on me because I grew to love it! However, it was all part of the experience and we got through it.

My advice to you is that if you are picking out your chicks somewhere. Be sure to observe them and make sure they are moving about and acting healthy. For us, it was really hard to “catch” the chicks to purchase them, so we were kind of just grabbing as we could. We had all four kids with us, and by the time we had as many as we wanted, we headed out quickly.

Check your chicks. You might not catch everything, but at least you’ll know you did your best in picking.

Holding the chicks

From what I read, you really shouldn’t hold the chicks right away to prevent stressing them out. I’m not going to lie, we did hold one or two for a short period on that first day. We couldn’t help it!

Every day we try to hold each of them for a minute or two in order for them to get used to being held. This choice was based on a suggestion from one of the books I read. Definitely do your research on the best way to hold them so you don’t hurt them.

As they get older we hold them longer. My kids like to let them walk in their laps. It’s so much fun to sit with them, just be prepared to be pooped on!

Naming the chicks

We talked about this for weeks. All the kids wanted to name their own chick. They even had some names picked out before we even got them, but once we got home it didn’t really work out that way.

We started watching their personalities and naming them accordingly. It was super fun to see how different they were. A few were very difficult to tell apart until they got bigger, so they were nameless for a couple weeks.

Prepare to get nothing done that first day or two

I say this with joy and laughter. We literally stared at the chicks over and over and over the first couple days. It was so fun to watch them and see what they were doing. We had them in the house, so it was easy for us to just walk up and observe.

Make sure you have a day or two set aside to really soak in the cuteness of these chicks!