Do chicks ever sleep?

[CrazyChickMom]

My chicks seem to sleep only a few minutes at a time and they are awake again. Chirping. How many hours of sleep are they suppose to get? And, why do they chirp loud at times and other times not? Just wondering!

 

[RAWR]

lol chicks nap alot. they're just like babies, only fuzzier and peepier lol but when they get older, chickens tend to fall asleep at nightfall.

 

[Backyard Hencam]

Our chicks would eat, drink, chirp, then fall asleep in a little pile. The barred rock slept a lot more than the others but she is kind of a calm laid-back bird even now. As they got older they slept less and less.

Loud continuous chirping sometime indicates they are uncomfortable. Are they warm enough? The brooder should be in the 90's the first few weeks.

 

[ClayChicken]

Mine are mostly very quiet and they sleep when we're not messing with them. They have not peeped loudly since they took their first drinks.

 

[gritsar]

Loud peeping can be a sign that they are too hot or too cold. The brooder should be 90 to 95 the first week, decreasing by 5 degrees per week. Having said that, my chicks disliked the 90 to 95 degree temps. from the time I got them on their 3rd day of life. They were much more comfortable around 85, even during the first week. So, watch your chicks. Staying huddled under the heat lamp and they are too cold. Staying as far away from the heat as possible, sometimes with their little wings spread and panting, and they are too hot.
Are you using a red heat bulb? They may just be getting overstimulated from a white light. Use of the red heat bulb allows them to be on a more natural schedule of day & night and can prevent pecking issues before they start.

 

[CrazyChickMom]

I did have a red light but now it's too hot for them. Some are 3 weeks + old and a few others are probably 4 or 5 weeks old. I am at 70 degrees now with a white light. A few of the chicks don't sleep under the light..the older ones. And the others do and they do sleep next to each other. I will have to check things out when they are chirping loudly. Some times their water dish gets full of wood shavings (well actually several times a day) and then they have no water.

 

[gritsar]

Only thing I wanted to add. They will likely sleep next to each other for quite awhile yet. It's not the same as huddling. So long as they aren't bunched up tight sounds like they are fine. Oh and try raising your waterer up on blocks, wood, anything solid. It should be the height of your smallest chick's back, so they have to reach just a little. This will help it stay cleaner.

 

[bethielynn]

I got chicks today and the temp is 95 degrees with a red bulb and they have been nonstop chatter all day! They are very active but don't seem to be panting. Are they just a rowdy bunch or do I need to change something?

 

[MaineMooseChick]

I got chicks today and the temp is 95 degrees with a red bulb and they have been nonstop chatter all day! They are very active but don't seem to be panting. Are they just a rowdy bunch or do I need to change something?

I got my chicks on Monday, and from the very first time I put them into the brooder, that's what they were like. They were very active, peeping, and as soon as they had gotten some food and water into them, they took to playing with each other. One would dig up a piece of pine shaving from underneath the paper towels I laid down and the rest would chase after it trying to get it. So fun to watch them! They were playing "keep away" with each other. I think it sounds like yours are very much the same as mine, so unless they are piling on top of each other under the light, they are fine.

 

[mithious]

mine are around a week and a half old and I had them down to a 40 watt light till today. Turned the light off for 5 mins at a time for a couple days, now off totally today and they are fine...my thermometer says it's 85 degrees in my cabin..so they are just fine as far as heat...prolly more so at this point. It is summer and unseasonably hot and humid, so I think they should be fine. They get up and eat, drink, poop, and go back to sleep, some scattered around, some sleeping apart from the others a bit. No loud peeping, just chirping...I tried all kinds of light and finally figured out to leave my thermometer on the counter to see what the ambient temp is inside the cabin...I go according to that and the chicks themselves...took a little detective work, but I think I can wean them off the light, atleast during the day. We will see tonite what they think about it!

Oh, I also found that they don't like it when I refill their waterer. They don't drink it till it warms a bit...a few will, but the others wait a bit and in these temps, it doesn't take long to warm to "room temp" !

Also, if the thermometer says it's below 80 at nite, I do put the 120 watt heat lamp back on them, and they let me know if they need it, everyone will start hollering at me