Chicks afraid of the dark

[tcl322]

Hello everyone.

Sadly we lost 2 of our 4 week old chicks the other night. Found them dead in the morning. A few nights ago we were hanging out with them in the coop and decided it was warm enough that they would not need a heat lamp or any light source. When we tried to turn out the light and leave, they all started freaking out, chirping loudly. I gave them a little while but they wouldn't calm down so I turned a small light on for them and they calmed down. The next night, we made sure the light was out before it got dark and just let them go to bed with the natural light. They seemed to do just fine. No loud chirping once it got dark. They did seem pretty skittish the next morning when I opened the door and windows, but settled down quickly.

So we did the same the next night. Let them go to bed with the sun going down. Heard no stressed chirping once it got dark. And the next morning found two dead. We had no idea what had happened..a water had been knocked over and their feed bin turned over as if there were a struggle of some kind. I thought maybe something had gotten in the coop but now I believe the two chicks died and it attracted fire ants (the dead ones had some fire ants on them in the morning) I think some of the other chicks probably got bit and started jumping around, knocking stuff over at that point. We had to clean the whole coop, check the remaining chicks for ants and treated the area around the coop for ants.

So last night, we waited till dark and when we went to shut the door, they were all huddled in the corner, piled on each other. So we turned the light on and they settled down. Now we think this is how the two died, by being suffocated because they are afraid of the dark. I know they can't be huddling because they were cold...it had to be almost 90 degrees still in there.

Needless to say we are afraid to turn the light out at night now for fear of loosing more. I hate to not let them have a natural light cycle but don't really know what to do. Has anyone had this happen? I have been reading a lot here of people letting them be in the dark from day 1? Could it be because they are outside in the coop and can hear any noises/wind, etc?

 

[BayBay Peepers]

Mine huddled at a young age. It wasn't as hot as by you, but after a few weeks they started to spread out. I think they just need to build confidence and find their place in this big ole world. I would give them some time, but make sure they have good ventilation in there. They will be fine in the dark.

 

[BayBay Peepers]

I'm very sorry you lost two

 

[azygous]

I'm very sorry about your losing those two chicks, and I'm very puzzled as to how your tragedy could have happened, as I'm sure you are.

Could you please clarify exactly how many chicks you have and how old are they? It's not at all clear to me, I'm sorry. But this might have bearing on what happened. Also, where are you located? That also is important to know. And how large an area are they confined to?

 

[tcl322]

Thank you all. We are located in north TX. It is about 90-95 during the days and high 70s at night. We started with 19 chicks so are now down to 17. They are 4 weeks old and we have them in an 8x5 coop.

 

[azygous]

That info helps. It's unlikely those chicks died from temperature issues.

I think what happened was they were crushed/smothered when the chicks panicked due to their unfamiliarity with their surroundings. It would have been far less likely to have happened if you had just half a dozen chicks, but with almost two dozen, that is probably the cause of death.

Usually, by the time chicks reach a month of age, they're more durable, and smothering is less likely, but it's the only thing I can conclude, given all was well just prior.

Chicks have some natural instinctive fears. Things coming at them from above and fear of dark places where they can't see clearly what dangers may be lurking are the two biggest.

When acclimating chicks to a new coop, I like to give them a tiny bit of light from a night light for the first couple nights until they become comfortable with their new home. Then I remove it when I see they're going into the coop on their own at night. A bit of light just makes all the difference in how they accept their new quarters.

You probably don't need the light by this point, their having adjusted in the meantime. But your tragic experience can be a big help to others facing this move with new chicks.

 

[tcl322]

Thanks for the info. Yes I thought they were big enough and strong enough not to smother each other but I guess I was wrong. I got a very low watt/dim red lamp (not a heat lamp) and that seems to work well for not and not really interrupt their sleeping pattern. Still seem to be going to be when the sun goes down so I think I will leave that in there a bit longer....let them get a little bigger still. We also put some low roosts in the coop and I saw four on their last night. Yes, hopefully this post can help someone else. If your chicks sound stressed and aren't calming down, def try to figure out what it is because that could be deadly.