Sooooo.. We now have chickens, and have to learn all kinds of chicken terminology that I have never even heard before. Like the word brooder. A brooder is a heated home for chicks (or other baby animals). So having a chicken coop isn’t enough if you are going to get baby chicks. Think of it like your crib before your toddler bed.

In my last post, Officially Chicken Owners, I talked about how it felt like a mad rush of grabbing supplies when we finally decided to get our chicks. We ended up with a large horse feeding trough to keep them in (which was about the size of a rubber maid bin) and was going to attach the light to it. When we got it all set up and posted a picture to our family and friends who actually have chickens, luckily they had some quick feedback.

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, visit my Disclosure page

  • The heat lamp was too close to the chicks, making their area too hot
  • The food and water bowls were too big and taking up way too much space
  • Overall we just didn’t have enough room for them. They looked like they fit right at the moment, but they didn’t have much room to get out of the heat lamp and ultimately they were going to continue to grow at a rapid pace over the next couple of weeks and ultimately be standing on top of each other
  • Add marbles or rocks to the water bowl to ensure they don’t drown themselves

We made some quick adjustments to ensure they were safe for the night (such as raising the heat lamp, and adding rocks to the water dish) and started game planning for a whole new set up the next day.

Creating a Brooder out of a Dog Crate

So my ability to find creative ideas on Pinterest really saves us so much money, and here is just another example. We have a 1 year old German Shephard mix puppy that we initially were crate training. That is until his beautiful eyes convinced us that he belongs in our bed rather than his crate. So we had a crate laying around.

So on Pinterest I came across a pic where someone took a large dog crate and turned it into a brooder with some cardboard. FANTASTIC! I have a crate. I have cardboard. Its happening! (Here is the one that I have)

We first measured out the cardboard to fit snug between the crate walls and the tray below.

Since we knew this was temporary, we used these clips that I found at Dollar Tree, to hold up the top pieces of the cardboard to the crate.

Once adding our shavings and hanging our heat lamp above the crate (I didn’t put it inside because it would be too close to the chicks and I hear about accidents happening and fires starting etc.) you can throw in the shavings and dishes.

Time for the chicks!

Ours have really liked the extra room, and I feel a lot safer about the other animals greeting them. Here are my pups checking the new babies out!

Ok last tip of the day – Because my kids are attached to these babies and constantly picking them up, I attached a couple of hand sanitizers to the door to help remind them to use them before and after handling the babies. (Note: I got these ones from StitcheryOwl.com)

Enjoyed this read? Check out related blog posts:
Predator Proofing Our First Chicken Run
The Why and How to using Sand in your Chicken Run