Keeping Day-Old Chicks Outside?

[NagemTX]

I've been using a topical of dawn mixed with water. I have also been using boiling water mixed with dawn. Both of these are working but they do not kill the queen or mound just the ants I hit with it. I will be treating with amdro out side of the coop by 2 to 3 foot out of reach of any animals once the threat of rain that popped up goes away.

 

[9 Little Dragons]

You can kill ants without poisons by causing a colony war. You dig deep into one ant colony and shovel it onto the other ant colony. Unless your entire yard is a super colony this should start a war that will end up with the targeted colony dead and the other colony moved out.

In full disclosure, I haven't done this myself but my dh has a long while back, so I can't tell you more particulars than that unless we ask him. A look online found this long article on it. I didn't read every word, but looks like it is explanatory enough.

https://offbeet-gardener.com/2022/02/how-to-control-ants-in-the-garden.html

 

[NagemTX]

I'm going to look into this. If I keep having issues it could be something to try.

 

[RenataPorter]

Pictures of where I'm brooding mine out side in hoop coop, first week in a hard plastic pool that they are now escaping(was hoping for two weeks in the pool.) The blue pool in the back is where I'm brooding. Had to add a heat lamp at nite and a fan on them during the day. Only issues now is Fire Ants. Once I have those under control I can remove the pool.

How did this go? I have a predator proof part of my run that I've marked off for a brooder. I have it all set with little cubby type things for them to get under, saw in a very old post. But with this rain and the sudden drop in temperature, I was wondering what you thought. I wasn't going to do a heat source, but again with this sudden change in weather I am thinking I might need to do something at night even though they will have the cubbies.

 

[NagemTX]

I had to add a heat lamp for the first week and a half because the temperatures at night where getting into the low 70s. I do have a woven hiddy hole that's for a rabbit in there for them. I took some old sleep pants with my smell on them and draped them over the side of the pool that made a little cave. They are doing amazing.

Oh just to add, temps where like that because of rain. That part of the coop is tarped with a 15mil tarp. It gets hot so they have a fan now to and places to get out of the wind from it. They do like the branch in front of it tho. Lol

 

[NagemTX]

I should get another updated pic of it when it stops raining.