chicks mouths open are they panting?

[dddCT]

I have 12 5 day old chicks and have noticed that several of them will have their mouths open almost like panting like a dog or that "duh" look you'll sometimes get from one of your kids LOL They seem otherwise comfortable and I havent noticed them clustered in any one area. They're all eating and drinking well. Should I be concerned?

 

[tiffanyh]

Hi...
are you keeping a thermometer in the brooder to see what temps they are at? It could be a bit high. That would cause them to pant. THey huddle together if the temps are low, they may pant and drink more water if the temps are high. THey should be at 95F and you can just put an outdoor thermometer in the brooder to see how hot it is.

 

[shangri-lafarms]

They def. sound like they are too hot, what I do is move the light source a few inches farther from them, this usually works...

 

[dddCT]

we bought a hygrometer and thermometer and have it in the brooder. It says it 92.5 which is lower than it should be I thought for the first week. Should I lower it more?

 

[PoultryPedia]

Chicks do pant when hot.
I highly recommend always putting a brooder's heat source at one end of the brooder, and being sure to construct a fairly long brooder (3 feet long is usually good enough). That way, as temps fluctuate, the chicks can move to the cooler end of the brooder during the hotter part of the day, away from the heat source. Also, keep the waterer in the cooler end of the brooder so it is a ready source for cooling down whenever needed.
Be sure to pull heat source a little further out of brooder (or reduce the wattage of the lamp's bulb) each week so temps are reduced by approx 5 degrees Fahrenheit per week. Also, having a thermometer in the brooder to help keep track of temps really helps!
Best wishes!

 

[Wildsky]

Do they have a "warm" and "cool" side in the brooder? make sure they have an area to move away from the lamp - or move towards it.

 

[PoultryPedia]

Quote:
Yes--The thermometer may be defective, and chicks themselves will give the best reliable measurement of their comfort level.
If you use a fairly long brooder with heat source at only one end, the chicks should do a fine job of keeping themselves located in an area that's the ideal temp for their development.

 

[PurpleChicken]

The thermometer measures ambient heat, not radiant, which is what a heat lamp
gives off. Chicks naturally go to the light for warmth, no matter how hot it is.

Turn off the light and see if they stop panting. If they do you know it's too hot.

 

[REELDOC]

At what point do you completely remove the heat and rely on ambient temp in the room, assuming the room isn't air conditioned and the temp is around 75-80 degrees?

 

[Wildsky]

Quote:
Its really difficult to say with certainty when the chicks will be fine without heat.

I started in the third week, turning heat off during the day - when they didn't go out in their little tractor, and slowly they were getting no heat at all - and they were fine, acting normal - having fun, cuddling to sleep but not PILED up in a desparate attempt to keep warm - you just have to watch them....