Help! My Chicks Are Afraid of the Dark!

[BigSkyChickens]

This is hilarious! Mine did OK the first night without the light, but the second night DBF wakes me up at midnight "I think there's something wrong with the chickens - they're all peeping like crazy." They fussed last night too, so I started a routine of gradually turning off lights - seems to give them time to get perched for the night. Coop is almost finished, thank goodness.

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

I just came on here to post this!

My 4-week-olds are about to spend their first night in the coop with no light. I tried last night and they went so ballistic I brought them back in thinking something was wrong - then I wondered if it was merely the dark! LOL. Silly chicks! It's in the 60s at night so I know they'll do well outside and they have a TON of feathers right now.

I was wondering about getting a glow stick and snapping it so it glows and hanging it from the ceiling.... or if I should just tell 'em to suck it up and deal with it??

 

[Akane]

Some of mine have gone so far as to bash into the sides of the brooder and get legs or wings caught when they are in the mesh brooder instead of my aquarium brooders. They'll also slam their heads into the top if it's one of the lower ones. That's why I don't just flip the light off. If they are freaking out that bad can you also imagine the psychological stress and damage it causes... Even if it is a chicken and will likely not remember the situation a week later that's not a good thing. It's simple to just get a cheap tinted 40w party bulb from walmart and screw it in for a few days. 5mins will save them a ton of stress.

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

my problem is that we're leaving for vacation on friday and there is no way to get electricity in our coop. They've been on the patio in a brooder box, but I spoke to many experienced chicken owners who said 4 week olds will do fine without a heat lamp when the low is only in the mid 60s at night.

But this being scared of the dark thing did not come into play! I can't get a light out there... so I wondered if we should just hang a bright glo-stick from the ceiling of the coop. it's a small enough coop and it would light it up a bit

anyone think this is a good idea?

or the dumbest thing you've heard in awhile?

I can take it! I'm desperate - we're leaving Friday and it's Wed night now.... GAH!

 

[eponagirl]

I have a ceramic heat emitter without a light as well as a red light that I've been using. I've been turning the red light off during the day and back on each night. My chicks are a week old... is it better to take away the red light sooner rather than later to avoid a "fear" reaction?? They will still have the heat they need from the emitter lamp and I can turn on a dimmer light in the room they are in or should I not use the dimmer light and let them experience the dark now??Hope this is not too confusing!

 

[Jen4]

We are going through this tonight... I was coming here to ask about this. Glad I found the post! Our chicks are 4 weeks old today and have been outside all day in their run, just brought them back in to but in their brooder, which they've just about outgrown AGAIN

I will be soooo happy when we finish the coop! I took their heat lamp away from them 2 nights ago to give to the baby keets that hatched but they still got some light from it.... but tonight I moved the keets and heat lamp further away from the chickies thinking it would be better so they would go to sleep instead of pecking on each other!

They freaked!!! But are quite now, so I guess its ok.

 

[CityChook]

tough love chicken parents. tough love.

If this is genuinely bothering you, you can purchase a dimmer switch that screws into your heat lamp base and dial down the light every night until it's off. I think it costs about $3.

Guesswhat - you could do the glow stick thing, it isn't going to hurt anything and it will make you feel better. But I think those things only last for like 12 hours, right? If you're leaving on vacation, can someone babysit them until you're back?

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

citychook - we have chickensitters and I was only thinking of the glo sticks for the first 2 nights they're out there with no light.

BTW, husband came up with the most awesome solution EVER!!! EEEKKK!!!

We have solar driveway lights in a box that we keep for emergency supplies for hurricane season. We're unpacking them and putting them next to the coop. They're solar so they'll charge all day in the sun and they'll glow all night!!! Our coop is an inside/outside coop and for some reason the chicks are scared of the inside and insist on sleeping in the outside portion (it's got hardwire cloth all around it and a wooden floor)... so they solar lights will light up their little outside coop part GREAT!!!

Tonight they have the glo-sticks hanging from the ceiling and one odd driveway light that we pulled up from our driveway. They've stopped screaming and slamming into the walls now...

 

[CityChook]

Solar lights. Good solution. Glad to hear that the glow sticks are working for tonight and your babies are settling down. What we wouldn't do for our chickens, eh?

My babies were still living in my house when I turned out their light. They cried all night. It broke my heart. But it only lasted two nights and then they settled down. Like I said, tough love.

 

[Grammahen]

I am so glad you started this thread! My 6 week old chicks have been out in their new coop for 1 week but this weekend it has been unseasonably warm here and they do not need their red light until later in the night. (I use a heat sensor in my coop that turns it on if it gets too cold) Only now my chicks wouldn't go in last night. I had to turn on a portable light and bring out yogurt to get them in. They just huddled in the corner peeping and crying when the light went out.
Wondering if I should use a ceramic bulb instead of a red one so they get used of the dark? Maybe they come 100 watt? I like the solar light idea. Would that get them to go in by themselves?