We lost 2 of our 3 chicks last night

Last night I noticed one of our chicks wings being a little droopy and this morning when I went to check on them 2 were dead leaving just one chick still alive. I am so sad.
I have always heard you shouldn't have just one chick. We have 2 Hens she will go outside with when she's older but I'm worried her being alone isn't a good thing. Is this true and should I go get another chick today so she isn't alone?

So sorry! Do you have any idea why they died? Shipping stress? Respiratory illness? Too cold? I would definitely get at least two more chicks , but would want to make sure issues were resolved first. Mary

I switched to a red heat lamp and when I came out this morning it was under 90 degrees so maybe cold? But one had the droops wings last night before I switched. I got them at a feed store and all 3 had poopy butts and the girl tried to reassure me they were fine. I cleaned them up and have kept them clean since we got them on Saturday.

I am guessing that your brooder may be too small. What are the dimensions?

The heat guidelines you're trying to adhere to neglect to point out that the temperature is measured just below the heat source and does not mean the entire brooder must be that temperature.

In fact, if the temperature guide were to be truly helpful, it would point out that there are, in fact, two temperature zones every brooder must have. The warm zone to warm the chicks, and a cool zone, a good twenty degrees or more cooler where chicks can self regulate by ridding their bodies of excess heat.

The 250 watt bulb may in fact cooking your chicks within the confines of a small space, effectively turning it into a Suzie Homemaker oven. Small brooders and those wicked heat lamps kill more chicks than any other risk factor during their first week of life.

Some of my friends here on BYC and I are on a quest to change minds about brooding chicks under dangerous heat lamps, and trying to promote the concept of the heating pad system (or the more pricey heat plates) instead. This system virtually eliminates the dangers of overheating, and it has other advantages as well, such as allowing the chicks to have natural day/night rhythms which reduces stress and gives their little bodies a rest during the night when they are doing most of their cell growth.

Meanwhile, consider brooding outside in your coop in a safe pen. ( See my article linked below on brooding outdoors.) Install your surviving chick in it with a heating pad cave. See the thread on heating pad brooding on this very page on this forum for a guide to how to set it up. The proximity to the other chickens will help the lone chick from being lonely until you can get two more chicks.

The heat bulb is a 60watt bulb, not 250. It's the same wattage as the regular bulb I was using before so I'm not sure why it was so much cooler this morning than the regular bulb was. The brooder is a 66 quart Rubbermaid box and has another side that is cool. They had plenty of space to move to the other side to regulate their temps. They are bantam chicks and are (or were) teeny tiny.