Brooder temp... When it's hot

[Nekhebet]

Today is supposed to be about 90 degrees. Should I turn off the heat lamp? My office where the chicks are located is very toasty already. I do have an under tank heat pad on that aquarium which I can plug in instead. It hasn't heated up outside yet but I don't want to fry the little guys.
Yesterday was not quite as warm as today's forecast but the chicks stayed together under the light. They are supposed to spread out if too hot, or so I've read on the "interwebz" lol. Can I count on them to indicate if they are feeling too hot?

 

[CorporateGranola]

If they are stay huddled closely together, they may actually be too cool. I'm not sure how big your aquarium is, but your chicks need to have enough space to get out of the heat if they so desire. It also depends on how old your chicks are, a chick at under two weeks is going to be farm more sensitive to colder temperatures than a chick who has started feathering out.

 

[Ravie]

My chicks live in our garage. We don't have AC out there and because of the hot weather, I've never really had to use the heat lamp. I do have a regular bulb over them so they have plenty of light. I used my thermometer to make sure the temps were in the right ballpark for their age and I watched them to make sure they weren't uncomfortable.

If they get too hot, they might spread out and even pant. They won't be terribly active. They may even cheap loudly. It won't be a contented little bird noise.

If they're too cold, they'll huddle together under the light, I'd move the lamp an inch or two closer and see if that helps.

Comfortable chicks are usually pretty active. I just played it by ear and adjusted things as I needed to. I'm home all day though, and able to check the thermometer and the chicks frequently.

 

[Nekhebet]

I've seen them run around and eat. They seem to gather when napping. I figured that was normal.

I'm going to go ahead and steal a thermometer fron the incubator and put it with the babies. They have a varying amount of feathers so hopefully I can find a happy medium...

 

[Nekhebet]

Oh and they are in a ten gallon glass tand with a wire top. I have a violet bulb over them which actually belongs to my snake, poor guy...

 

[Ravie]

If they're running around, eating, drinking, and napping, then they're probably doing just fine.

 

[Nekhebet]

Quote:
Thanks for the response. They look ok to me, they are chirping and the biggest seems to be either bathing in or making himself a bed in the food dish. So not the sharpest tools in the shed but so far they seem ok with the heat levels. Hopefully it doesn't get any hotter.

 

[CorporateGranola]

How many do you have in the 10 gallon tank? If you have more than a couple, they are going to grow out of that very quickly. I used one of those "kiddie pools" from ACE Hardware with large cardboard boxes to make walls. I don't use a top and haven't had any problems with the girls jumping over the top.

I use a red colored bulb in my heat lamp (clamped to a cinder-block). Total cost for my brooder was less than $30 if i recall correctly.

 

[Nekhebet]

Quote:
Hi corporate. I have five Serama chicks in there. I was thinking if moving them to perhaps a larger sterilite container, likely within the week.

 

[CorporateGranola]

I know some people move their chicks from brooder to brooder as they grow (and maybe they have good reasons for it) I'm still a newbie so my experience is very limited. With that said, I've had really good luck using a single large brooder for my 9 girls and the "deep litter" method. I stir their litter once or twice a day to keep odor down and you can't even tell I have chicks in the house. If you do use litter, make sure you stay away from cedar because the oils can irritate young chicken's lungs.