Are my chicks to hot/cold?

[Emilykb15]

Hey everyone. I just got chicks today. Earlier they were moving around the brooder, napping, eating, and drinking. Not all huddled together. Now they are all huddled together (sleeping?) on the side of the brooder. They aren’t huddled under the heat nor are they huddled as far away as possible from the heat. I can’t tell if they are to cold or hot or if they are just sleeping in a comfortable area in the brooder.
Any help would be great.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Huddling isn't necessarily about hot/cold, they also do it for comfort. From your description it sounds like the temperatures are just right, if they're neither spending most of them time under the heat or away.

 

[Emilykb15]

Huddling isn't necessarily about hot/cold, they also do it for comfort. From your description it sounds like the temperatures are just right, if they're neither spending most of them time under the heat or away.

thank you! I’m just trying to make sure they are okay. I don’t think I realized they huddled together for comfort as well. Hopefully that’s all it is. They are definitely not huddled at the perimeter nor under the heat. Just on the edge of where the heat Lamp seems to touch.

 

[em_dawson]

Oh yeah, they love to sleep in tiny chick piles. It's adorable. If they're panting or trying to flatten themselves out against the ground, that can be a sign of overheating. They can also be loud, but constant screaming peeping can indicate a wrong temperature too.

 

[vantain]

Ha ha..yeah...they do like a good pile. This is how I found mine last night when I went to check on them. There are eight in there.

 

[em_dawson]

Ha ha..yeah...they do like a good pile. This is how I found mine last night when I went to check on them. There are eight in there.
View attachment 2146016

You’d think it would be too small, but they made it work!

 

[chixrus2013]

Yup they like to cuddle. Very cute. They will drape their necks over one another. They love to stick together and will really start peeping loudly if they are away from the others, like if you take one out to hold it. Mine are almost 4 weeks old and go out in the coop and run and if one of them is on the inside and all the others are in the run, boy do they get upset. They still all sleep right near one another, whether or not they are cold. You will be able to tell the difference. When they're cold they will be huddled together but will be right under the heat lamp, trying to get warm. You'll also notice that they're trying to be on the inside of the "pile" because they want warmth from all of the others and don't want to be the outside one. When they're just right they will settle down into a comfortable sleep together.

 

[Emilykb15]

Thank you everyone! This information has been so helpful! I think my chicks are doing well with the temperature. They all seem to be comfortably lounging with one another.
On to make a new post about my immune boost questions! Thanks again!