Heating plate too high? Too low?

[Mothermay]

Th we are my first baby chicks I have hatched. I’ve done extensive research but I’m still so worried I will do something wrong! They hatched yesterday morning. 3/6 have hatched so far.
Does this heating plate look like a good height for them?
Also when should I encourage eating and drinking?
So happy to finally join this community!

 

[ChickenChick46]

Your plate looks good to me. Lower at the back so they can snuggle up to it, but higher at the front if they want to be under it but not against it. That's what I read, anyway.

I haven't actually hatched chicks before, so I'll let someone that has answer your other question about encouraging them to eat and drink. They're very cute! Congratulations!

 

[thecatumbrella]

Looks good to me. They'll complain if you don't have the height right. Otherwise, they'll settle just like yours are. After a few days, just keep it adjusted to back height of the tallest chick.

Start teaching them to eat and drink now. Tap at the food. Some chick crumble brands are too large for them to eat and can benefit from a quick buzz in the food processor. Briefly dip the TIP of their beaks in the water (be very careful not to get any in their nostrils).

Congrats on your first hatch!

 

[NatJ]

They hatched yesterday morning. 3/6 have hatched so far.
...Also when should I encourage eating and drinking?

Chicks absorb the yolk of the egg just before they hatch. This means they can go about 3 days before they really need to eat and drink.

Eating and drinking sooner will not hurt them. But no need to panic if they don't start right away.

 

[kattabelly]

Having it angled like that is good because they can choose whether they're pressed right up against it or a bit further away. They'll cheep if they're too cold and lie sprawled out from the sides of the plate if they're too hot.

They should have food and water available - show them where it is, but don't worry if they aren't very interested straight away. Some will start eating almost immediately and some can take 48 hours to even start doing very uncoordinated pecking in the direction of things. I like to scatter dry crumb over the "ground" as they'll naturally start to peck at things, but also have watery mash out for them as some find it easier to eat that at first. One one has got the hang of it, the rest should learn from them.

 

[Tstraub]

I’ve never used those plates before but that looks right to me. The angle allows the chicks to choose how close they want to be to it. When I hatch chicks I have food, water and grit in the brooder before the chicks go in.

Food and grit are scattered around the floor so they can’t take more than a step or two without finding something to eat. Water is in the brooder early enough that it is at brooder temperature before the chicks go in. I dip each chick’s beak in the water when I first place them in the brooder and let them find the food and grit themselves. On day two or three I add pine shavings to the brooder and place a bowl of food and grit mixture in.