The Age-Old Practice of “Cold-Brooding” Baby Chicks

By Dalia Monterroso, The President of Chickenlandia

How did chicken farmers raise baby chicks before electricity?

I often sit and ponder about how things were done long ago. When I say “long ago”, I’m talking about before Amazon Prime, before iPhones, and even *shutters* before Netflix. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m so old I remember when kids’ television shows (think: Loony Toons) only aired on weekdays from 3 to 4 pm and Saturday mornings. We had to watch commercials and even remote controls were futuristic! Alas, sometimes the world I grew up in seems like a dream that never really happened. I wonder how my great-grandmother would feel about the world we live in today. And I wonder…how the heck did she brood baby chicks without an electric heat source?

My first batch of baby chicks!

Cold-Brooding Baby Chicks

When burning questions concerning chickens keep me up at night, I feel have no choice but to go down the chicken rabbit hole so you don’t have to. I must say, though, there really isn’t a ton of information online about brooding chicks without electricity. I found a few blog posts and videos about raising chicks off-grid, but most of what I could find was about heat lamp alternatives that still required power. Even my collection of mid-1900s chicken books mostly focused on wacky contraptions that, to be honest, seem pretty dangerous through my modern lens. But through it all, I did manage to piece together some nifty ways in which baby chicks can survive without heat. The practice is called “cold-brooding,” and if nothing else, understanding how it works could be extremely helpful in the event of a power outage.

Chicken Math gone awry!

More is Better

Chicken keepers like to joke about a phenomenon called “chicken math,” which is the tendency to get more and more chickens despite ominous looks from our spouses. If you decide to cold-brood baby chicks it’s important to know that more is actually better in this case. Under natural circumstances, baby chicks rely on their mother’s fluffy body to keep them warm. The younger chicks are, the more in danger they are of getting chilled. If there is no mother hen or artificial heat source available, baby chicks will naturally turn to each other for warmth and comfort. This is why it is best to have no less than a dozen chicks if you plan to cold-brood. You want them to be able to huddle together so that they can generate enough heat to keep from getting chilled.

Baby chicks hanging out indoors like they got it like that.

Your New Housemates

You may or may not know this already, but baby chicks generate a ton of dust, especially if they are being kept on shavings. Because of this fact, I often suggest keeping your brooder in an area other than inside your house, such as a garage or shed. This is not the best option for cold-brooding, however, because the ambient temperature needs to be at least above 70 degrees Fahrenheit. If possible, it’s safest for your chicks to keep your brooder near your family’s heat source, such as a wood-burning stove or fireplace. Keeping them near your heat will be a much-needed layer of protection against becoming too cold.

Keep Them Cozy

I normally say that as long as there are no drafts or other dangers present, the more space you can give baby chicks the better. This is not the case if you are cold-brooding. Having your chicks in a smaller space (not over-crowded, but cozy) makes it easier for their environment to retain heat. In fact, some cold-brooding set-ups consist of two “rooms” for chicks, one small, very insulated compartment for chicks to go into, huddle, and warm up together, and another compartment with feed, water, and some space to stretch their legs. If you have your chicks inside where the ambient temperature is above 70 degrees, one area should work just fine. Many of you likely have a plastic bin that might be too small if you were using artificial heat but is perfect for cold-brooding. Having a smaller brooder will also make it easier for you to insulate their space by placing thick blankets over and around it. Of course, always make sure there is adequate ventilation and clean their brooder often to ward off any ammonia build-up.

Snuggle Bugs

Give them something to snuggle with

Baby chicks can generate heat by snuggling under or near something cozy such as a feather or wool duster, a wool blanket, or even a stuffed animal. Make sure anything you offer them is free of chemicals such as fabric softeners or artificial fragrances, as well as loose strings that they can get caught up in. You also don’t want to use a blanket so heavy that a chick could get stuck beneath it. Above all, use common sense.

If you are the diligent sort, you can wrap a hot water bottle in a towel and offer it to them to warm up near. If you decide to do this, just be sure you are checking it often and make certain it stays warm even overnight. Once your baby chicks get used to a heat source, you want to keep it on offer until they can be slowly weaned from it as they grow into their adolescent feathers.

Mama and LOTS of babies

‘Tis it Really the Season?

If you are considering raising chicks without heat, it’s best to plan that baby-raising according to the seasons. There is an important reason that mother hens normally go broody in the spring: it’s so her babies will hatch during an ideal climate when she doesn’t have to worry about them getting accidentally chilled. Even when you’re brooding chicks indoors, keeping the ambient temperature above 70 degrees can be more difficult and definitely more expensive in the cold of winter. This is why it’s better to hold off acquiring your baby chicks until later in the year after things warm up. In the Southern USA, there are times when the temperatures are so high in the summer that chicks don’t need additional heat even if you wanted to offer it! So, make things easier on yourself and your chickens. Remember: cold-brooding works best during the late spring and summer months.

A healthy, hardy hen.

Bullet-Proof Babies

Baby chicks that survive cold-brooding often grow up to be very hardy and healthy adult chickens. As with most things, though, there are risks to raising chicks this old-fashioned way. It is an unfortunate possibility that you may lose a chick or chicks because they became chilled or otherwise stressed. For this reason, my soft heart will always recommend using a mother hen or artificial heat source. However, I must acknowledge that not every person has access to heat lamps or heat plates, so I wanted to be sure this information was out there in an organized way. If you choose to cold-brood your baby chicks, I’d love to hear about it! Let me know about your experience in the comments.

This article is featured in my online course Chickenlandia’s Backyard Chickens 101 – A Chicken Course for Everyone! Find out more about this easy and interactive course by clicking here.

Chickenlandia’s NEW Book is Now Available for Pre-order!

I can’t believe it’s finally happening…

Words cannot express how excited I am to finally be sharing the pre-order link for my new book Let’s All Keep Chickens! which has been a labor of love for nearly three years. Since I became a Backyard Chicken Educator over a decade ago, I’ve been gathering the information I need to put it all together. For the months that I was actively writing, I would sit in my youngest son’s bed and type away as he fell asleep. That’s how I was able to get this done, by squeezing in moments to write whenever I could. It was hard, but it has been so worth it. You can find all the purchase options for Let’s All Keep Chickens! by clicking the link below:

Pre-order Let’s All Keep Chickens! here.

Aren’t chickens awesome?

This one is different…

At the risk of tooting my own horn, I have to say that I don’t think there’s another chicken book like this one on the market. Don’t get me wrong, there are so many great chicken books, some of which I have used in my own education throughout the years. But Let’s All Keep Chickens! is different because my goal is not only to share with you the ins and outs of chicken keeping but also to inspire you to use this age-old practice to enrich not only your life but also the world. I really mean that! 

The actual release date for the book is February 28th, 2023, just in time for baby chick season! Leading up to the release, I’ll be updating you via social media regarding any interviews I’ll be doing and any in-person events I may be participating in. It’s going to be a very busy and very exciting time, so make sure you’re following me on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Me and Gizmo sporting the same hair LOL

Chicken Keeping is for everyone.

I’m so glad we have found each other on this wild chicken adventure we’re on. I hope you will take a moment to pre-order my book and share the link with your friends. But even if you can’t buy my book or my online course, remember: there’s a ton of FREE content on my YouTube Channel and Podcast. And above all, remember that you are always welcome in Chickenlandia! 

The Life of a Chicken Lady

Henlo, Frens! Well, this week has been a little up and down. We all ended up with chest colds which forced us to slow down and focus on healing. We’re on the mend now, which is good, and I did get a chance to create a vlog before the sickness hit! It’s all about my life as a chicken lady. I hope you enjoy That Chicken Lady Life on my YouTube channel. Just click the play button below.

Don’t forget to subscribe to my channel and click the notifications bell so you never miss any fun Chickenlandia videos. Stay tuned for a longer blog post next week, but in the meantime, let me know what your chicken life is like in the comments!

 

What is the Chickenlandia Way?

I’ll never forget the day I brought home my first flock of baby chicks. I had planned to only get about four or five, and came home with ten, naturally! At the time, I had no idea the profound impact that chickens would have on my life. Believe it or not, it was only about a year later that I taught my first class on raising chickens. I’ve continued to share my knowledge with others ever since.

A silkie from my first flock.

Some might question my dive into teaching about backyard chickens when my level of experience was so relatively new. All I can say is that when chickens entered my life, I just couldn’t get enough of them. I completely immersed myself in learning every detail about their nature and care. I faithfully followed larger chicken keepers that I respected and quickly developed my own style and preference. When I completed that first three-hour class at my local community college, a woman approached me and said, “I’ve had chickens for thirty years, and I learned more about them today than I ever knew.” I will forever be grateful for her kind words, because from that moment on, what was just a hobby became the way I would communicate with the world.

Book Dalia Monterroso for an event
Delivering my TEDX Talk, “I Dream of Chickens”.

From the beginning, I have always seen chickens as a wonderful common denominator among human beings. I quickly realized, however, that there were others who didn’t see it that way. I’m not going to speak poorly of anyone who has strong beliefs about how chickens should be raised. I get it. I have my opinions as well. But ultimately, I try to remind myself that chickens should be for everyone, and that not everyone is the same. Should I condemn the long-time farmer for free-ranging his birds with full knowledge that he may lose some to predators? I keep my birds safe in an enclosed run because it’s hard for me to lose them, but my experience is not the same as his. What about the person who culls her flock after two years of egg laying service? I keep mine until they die of old age, but my livelihood doesn’t depend on their eggs, and I also have the means to keep them as pets. Not everyone can or wants to do that. And that’s okay.

So, what is the Chickenlandia Way? It’s the way that allows more chickens to live a life outside of factory farms. It’s the inclusion of all different types of chicken keepers who love chickens. It’s a path that opens doors rather than closes them. It’s easy, it’s simple, it’s inclusive. That’s why my specialty is beginning chicken keeping, because I want people to know from the start that they belong here and that they can do it!

The place where everyone belongs.

Whew! I truly didn’t know I was going to write all that. But I’m glad to have the opportunity and I’m glad to possibly bring others the opportunity to raise baby chicks. For a very easy guide to get started, click the play button below!

What kind of chicken person are you? Let me know in the comments!

 

 

Peace Through Chickens

It’s almost Christmas, and children everywhere are dreaming about that special morning. I’m sure many of you adults also have a Christmas or holiday wish. I hope it comes true for you. As for me, I have one very important dream for this Christmas. My dream is that I can communicate my most sincere Chickenlandia message. It’s a message of peace. Peace through chickens, or whatever else brings it to you.

Beautiful hen in the snow.

I know what many think. They think it’s silly for me to believe humans could achieve peace through chickens. It does seem overly simplified, but when I fell in love with my first flock, I actually had no idea how much sitting among them would bring peace and meaning into my life. That’s when my Chickenlandia message was born, because I realized that people all over the world were sitting among their flocks and feeling the same way I was. What a wonderful common denominator!

Thai chicken farmer and his rooster.

Thoughout history, humans and chickens have created a deep and meaningful relationship. It’s one that has lasted throughout the ages despite our conflicts with each other. We’ve written stories, sang songs, and sometimes even found religious meaning in our feathered friends. There’s no end to the symbolism of the chicken, and it’s a symbol almost all of us recognize. Can you think of a culture that doesn’t enjoy chickens in some way?

Who doesn’t love a baby chick?

So, yes, I know it’s a simple-minded idea to think that chickens could somehow save the world. But maybe we need to start with something simple and go from there. Maybe we could all think about something small we have in common with our neighbor. Maybe if everyone did that, we could finally find the peace we’re looking for. And yes, we’re all looking for it. Every. Single. One of us.

Please take a moment to watch my Chickenlandia Christmas Special. Just click the play button below! I hope you love it. And I hope you have a wonderful holiday.

Do you have a Christmas or other holiday wish? Let me know in the comments!

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