Appreciation post: the old guy at the feed store who caught my chicken math mistake

I went to pick up a new batch of layers last Saturday, 12 Rhode Island Reds. Guy behind the counter, maybe 70 years old, asked if I had a heat lamp set up. I said yeah, an old 250 watt bulb. He just shook his head and said 'you're gonna cook em' and handed me a 100 watt ceramic one instead. He was right, the first batch I got two months ago all died from overheating. I was too stubborn to ask anyone. Has anyone else gotten humbled by some random expert at a farm store?

2 comments

2 Comments

jason3284d ago

Wait, isn't a 250 watt bulb for chicks still pretty standard? I've always used one and never lost any, maybe I've just been lucky with the brooder size or something. That ceramic one sounds like it'd barely keep em warm if your setup is drafty.

leobrown3d ago

Yeah, @jason328, I hear what you're saying. My uncle ran a setup years ago with a regular 250 watt bulb in a drafty old barn and swore by it. But then he switched to a red bulb one winter and said the chicks seemed calmer, less pecking at each other. Weird how small changes like that can mess with your whole routine. Guess we all got our own little tricks that work till they don't.