So we just got 15 chicks last week. They are one week old today. They are Easter Eggers and this morning we woke to one suddenly dead. They have all been behaving very good all week, eating drinking and we’ve been giving them electrolyte water and they are on organic starter feed with probiotics in it. We’ve been cleaning the butts that have been really poopy to make sure no pasty butt occurs. We’ve been using a heating plate from day 1 and they seem to love it and go under when they want to and at night all of them sleep under there. The room we have them in is in our basement and overall temp in the room is 60 degrees. But the heating plate stays at the temperature suggested for them. We are wondering why one of them would suddenly die like that? Could she have gotten trampled by the other chicks?
Also we called the hatchery where we got them (Hoover’s) and they said they should have a heat lamp not heat plate because the ground floor has to be 90 degrees. But everything I read about the heating plate says it works better than a lamp because it mimics the mama hen. I’d rather not have to get a heating lamp because of all the dangers that come with it. And people we’ve talked to before with heating lamps says the chicks are always trying to get away from the heat and that the light bothers them that it’s on 24/7.
Suggestions? Answers on why our chick died? Does the ground really have to be 90?
We are also using pine shavings as the litter.
Also we called the hatchery where we got them (Hoover’s) and they said they should have a heat lamp not heat plate because the ground floor has to be 90 degrees. But everything I read about the heating plate says it works better than a lamp because it mimics the mama hen. I’d rather not have to get a heating lamp because of all the dangers that come with it. And people we’ve talked to before with heating lamps says the chicks are always trying to get away from the heat and that the light bothers them that it’s on 24/7.
Suggestions? Answers on why our chick died? Does the ground really have to be 90?
We are also using pine shavings as the litter.