Help! Loud chicks!

[murphygirlwyondotte]

Hi all-
I have 5 Golden Laced Wyondottes, about 2.5-3 weeks old. I'm new into the chicken world, so I don't know if the chirping is bad or not. I have them in a brooder with a hay, heat lamp, food, water, and perching stuff. I don't think they have been all that loud at all, but I just noticed yesterday them being louder. I think there is one that is louder than all the others, and she's chirping almost consistantly. It doesnt necessarily seem like a distressful cry, but like I said, it seems almost constant. Its also really hard to tell which one/ones are chirping!! But they all seem pretty active, explore a lot, attack eachother for peking order stuff, they all eat and drink. I've been making them electrolyte water for the past day or so (sugar/salt/baking soda) and they all love it. They quiet down when theyre sleeping and stuff, I'm just worried somethign is wrong. I picked up the one who I think is the one who chirps the most and she seems fine. No scrapes I can see or anything. Although, I dont know exactly waht to look for. She had pasty butt last week but has since made a great recovery. It may be worth noting that she also runs away super fast everytime I reach my hand in brooder, the other ones don't mind that much. They live in my studio apartment with me so I can hear them everywhere I go in my home, so I'm constantly worried and over-thinking. Am I over-worrying? Or could there be something wrong? Please give me some insight if you can!!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

At their age they are ready for more room and exercise. Are they eventually going outside?
How big is your brooder? What temperature are you brooding at? Or what is your heat source.

Chicks are louder when they are unhappy. So you need to figure out why.

 

[Aunt Angus]

I find my chicks get loud if they are cold or if they can't find their buddies. I also have one that got a little loud, and I noticed she was straining to poop. I cleaned her bum and it cleared up. It wasn't completely pasty, but enough that she was uncomfortable. I also had a Welsummer who was just very vocal. Very. And my current 3-week Sebright is also very vocal, but not super loud like my Welsie was.

If I were you, I'd check your brooder temp, check their bums, and find out if you have a particularly noisy breed. I know nothing about Wyandottes. Hopefully, someone else can chime in about that.

 

[murphygirlwyondotte]

At their age they are ready for more room and exercise. Are they eventually going outside?
How big is your brooder? What temperature are you brooding at? Or what is your heat source.

Chicks are louder when they are unhappy. So you need to figure out why.

Yes they will be going outside in a large chicken coop with a good run for them. But not for a few more weeks, right? How can I give them more excersize now? Brooder is a 45 gallon tote, about 37-inches in length and 21-inch width. And the temperatue is about 83-85F right now from a heat lamp about 3 ft off ground.

 

[murphygirlwyondotte]

I find my chicks get loud if they are cold or if they can't find their buddies. I also have one that got a little loud, and I noticed she was straining to poop. I cleaned her bum and it cleared up. It wasn't completely pasty, but enough that she was uncomfortable. I also had a Welsummer who was just very vocal. Very. And my current 3-week Sebright is also very vocal, but not super loud like my Welsie was.

If I were you, I'd check your brooder temp, check their bums, and find out if you have a particularly noisy breed. I know nothing about Wyandottes. Hopefully, someone else can chime in about that.

How did you know that she was straining to poop if you dont mind me asking? Like was she looking like she was "pushing" for too long? Thanks for the tip to look it up, I did see that some wyondottes can be loud because they are a little bit more of a dominant breed. Thanks for the input!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Yes they will be going outside in a large chicken coop with a good run for them. But not for a few more weeks, right? How can I give them more excersize now? Brooder is a 45 gallon tote, about 37-inches in length and 21-inch width. And the temperatue is about 83-85F right now from a heat lamp about 3 ft off ground.

Where are you located? I take young chicks outside as soon as temperatures are warm enough. At 3 weeks of age your chicks should be around 75-80 degrees for brooding. So your brooder may be a bit too warm.

Your chicks would enjoy a few hours outside if your outside temperatures are higher than that 75-80 degrees. I use a 5 gallon pail set on it's side as a Sun powered brooder outside. It heats up and chicks can choose to sit in it if they want. Otherwise doubling your brooder may help as chicks like to run and flap at that age.

You can also add some clumps of clean sod for chicks to pick at, as well as adding perches to mess around on to help with boredom.

Generally chicks are ready for more room every 2 weeks.

 

[bobbi-j]

Are they in your house right now? Is there enough room for them to get out of the heat from the lamp? Ideally, they should be able to come and go from that heat lamp at will. Are there other chickens in your coop right now? How big is the coop (in feet x feet)? And the run?

I start my chicks in the coop. They have a lot of room to roam, and plenty of space to get away from the heat as they wish. I keep feeders and waterers in the cooler part of the setup.

 

[Willowspirit]

I have mine in a brooder still but I have five two week old bantams in a brooder box the size of a twin bed. They spend almost no time near the heat. So your bigger chicks might really be needing some space by now.

 

[murphygirlwyondotte]

Where are you located? I take young chicks outside as soon as temperatures are warm enough. At 3 weeks of age your chicks should be around 75-80 degrees for brooding. So your brooder may be a bit too warm.

Your chicks would enjoy a few hours outside if your outside temperatures are higher than that 75-80 degrees. I use a 5 gallon pail set on it's side as a Sun powered brooder outside. It heats up and chicks can choose to sit in it if they want. Otherwise doubling your brooder may help as chicks like to run and flap at that age.

You can also add some clumps of clean sod for chicks to pick at, as well as adding perches to mess around on to help with boredom.

Generally chicks are ready for more room every 2 weeks.

Im on the Bay Area coast of California. Temperatures here are in the low 70s right now, so it might be a bit cold. Brooder is a 45 gallon tote, about 37-inches in length and 21-inch width. And the temperatue is about 83-85F right now from a heat lamp about 3 ft off ground. I put in an upsidedown teacup and they've been perching on that and an upsidedown tuperware as well. I even caught one on top of the feeder a few days ago
What is sod? They are on straw hay and they've been picking and poking at it.
And when would you siggest I can move them outside in their coop for good?
Thanks!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Im on the Bay Area coast of California. Temperatures here are in the low 70s right now, so it might be a bit cold. Brooder is a 45 gallon tote, about 37-inches in length and 21-inch width. And the temperatue is about 83-85F right now from a heat lamp about 3 ft off ground. I put in an upsidedown teacup and they've been perching on that and an upsidedown tuperware as well. I even caught one on top of the feeder a few days ago
What is sod? They are on straw hay and they've been picking and poking at it.
And when would you siggest I can move them outside in their coop for good?
Thanks!

Sod is a chunk of grass with the roots and dirt attached. I moved my chicks out at 4 weeks. I weaned them off heat at 3 weeks because temperatures were warm enough here. Generally by 5 weeks or so most chicks are feathered enough to go out.