When Can Chicks Go Outside and Move to the Coop?

Chicks can go outside full time when they are fully feathered, which is about 6 to 8 weeks old, and when nighttime temperatures stay above about 50°F. That is the rule from VCA Animal Hospitals and the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. Before that, short supervised trips outside on warm days are fine, but the brooder stays home base. This page is part of the chick brooder guide.

When can chicks go outside?

“Outside” means two different things. A supervised field trip to the lawn can start once the chicks handle the room temperature in the brooder and the day is warm. Living outside, in the coop, day and night, waits until they are fully feathered.

Most chickens are fully feathered at 6 to 8 weeks, and once they are, they handle normal daytime temperatures (VCA). After about 6 to 8 weeks, once fully feathered, chicks can move to the coop as long as nights stay above about 50°F (University of Arizona Extension). A 6-week-old chick is ready for the coop when the outdoor temperature is at least 50°F (Purina).

Fully feathered means the chick down has been replaced by real feathers. Breeds and batches feather at different speeds, so check the birds rather than counting days.

Off heat and outside are separate steps. In a warm room that holds around 80°F by day and 70°F at night, chicks can come off the lamp early, because the room does the work. They still stay inside until they are feathered, around six to seven weeks in summer and later if the weather is cool. In a cold garage, keep the heat on longer and follow the temperature chart.

What temperature is safe for chicks outside?

Use 50°F at night as the line. Bring chicks back inside if nighttime temperatures go below 50°F (VCA). Birds at 6 to 8 weeks handle the 50s, and cold-tolerant breeds handle the 40s (Purina).

The brooder schedule gets you there. VCA starts at 93 to 95°F in week one and drops 5°F a week until the brooder sits at 65 to 70°F. Our brooder temperature chart has the week-by-week numbers from extension sources. When your chicks are comfortable at room temperature with the heat off, they are close to ready.

How do you move chicks from the brooder to the coop?

Do it in steps over a few days. Birds raised in a warm space need a few days to adjust to colder temperatures (Purina).

1. Turn the brooder heat off for longer stretches during the day, then at night, so the chicks get used to room temperature.
2. Take them out to the run or a secure pen on warm afternoons, and stay with them. Never leave young chickens outside unattended (VCA).
3. Move them in during the day, not at dusk, so they learn the coop with daylight left. In hot weather, move them in the cool of the morning or early evening, so the catching and crating does not add heat stress.
4. Put their usual feeder and waterer in the coop, and stay on the same starter-grower feed they started on (Purina).
5. Shut them in the coop for their first night or two before letting them range, so they learn it is where they sleep. Sprinkle a little feed just outside the coop door so they do not have to go far at first. Expect to herd every chick back inside each evening for the first nights, because some will try to sleep anywhere else.
6. Check them at dusk for the first few nights. Chicks that huddle in a corner instead of finding a roost or a warm spot may need a few more days of night heat in the brooder.

20:56

Can chicks go in with older hens?

Not at first. Quarantine new birds, chicks included, for about 4 weeks, physically separate from the flock and far enough away that they do not share the same air (University of Arizona Extension). Then let the two groups live near each other with a physical barrier between them, such as a fence, playpen or kennel.

Once the chicks are around the same size as the hens, they can mix without the barrier. Some pecking and squawking is normal while the new pecking order settles, so step in only during a serious fight. Keep young pullets and cockerels apart from older chickens until they reach the same size (Purina).

What does the coop need before chicks move in?

The coop has to be ready for small, light birds that predators target first: hawks, owls, raccoons, and neighborhood dogs and cats. Cover the walls with sturdy wire mesh the chicks cannot push their heads through (VCA).

• Predator-proof openings. Chicken wire keeps chickens in but does not keep raccoons out, so use hardware cloth and follow the predator-proof coop checklist.
• Room to grow. Give chicks twice the floor space they started with between weeks 6 and 8 (Purina).
• Dry bedding on the floor. The chicken coop bedding guide compares pine shavings, straw and sand.
• Fresh air without drafts. Put vents up high, above the roost, per the coop ventilation guide.
• Feeder and waterer at chick height, with the same feed they ate in the brooder.

If you are still choosing a coop, size it for the flock the chicks will grow into, not the chicks you have today.

Can meat chickens go out earlier?

Meat chickens need brooder heat for a shorter time. Dr. Jacquie Jacob of the University of Kentucky starts broilers at 90 to 95°F for the first week, then lowers the temperature five degrees a week until the broilers are three to four weeks old or the pen holds 70°F (poultry.extension.org). After that they no longer need supplemental heat. The predator rules above still apply, and a pen or tractor for meat birds needs the same mesh and the same night check.

Moving day goes smoothly when the brooder phase went well. If your next batch is still on the way, the best chick brooder picks cover floor space by chick count and age.

Written by Kyle

Kyle has kept backyard chickens on his own small farm for five years. He reads the extension research, the spec sheets and the owner complaints, then tells you what he would buy and what he would skip.

About KyleHow we research