How many hours of light should chicks in a brooder have?

[lazy gardener]

Because you are brooding your chicks in the winter, which is not a natural brooding time, I'd give them at least 12 hours of day light, perhaps with a night light to come on before "lights out" so that they have time to "go to bed". You may need to supervise to see to it that they all get tucked in for the night.

As for cannibalism: I think the "they say" folks have their facts messed up. It's natural for chicks to have a normal day/night cycle. Chicks who are overheated, or under lights 24/7, THOSE are the ones who are prone to cannibalism.

 

[debid]

Because you are brooding your chicks in the winter, which is not a natural brooding time, I'd give them at least 12 hours of day light, perhaps with a night light to come on before "lights out" so that they have time to "go to bed". You may need to supervise to see to it that they all get tucked in for the night.

As for cannibalism: I think the "they say" folks have their facts messed up. It's natural for chicks to have a normal day/night cycle. Chicks who are overheated, or under lights 24/7, THOSE are the ones who are prone to cannibalism.

I always thought cannibalism was mostly a sign of crowding. Individual personality issues excluded, of course, but this is why they debeak the chicks destined to be battery hens.

ETA: not that I disagree on the merits of a day/night cycle. I've used both and found that I strongly prefer the MHP method.

 

[lazy gardener]

I always cannibalism was mostly a sign of crowding. Individual personality issues excluded, of course, but this is why they debeak the chicks destined to be battery hens.

Yes, you are right. Overcrowding is one very real cause of cannibalism in the brooder AND in the coop. Factory farm chicks are debeaked because they are kept on minimal protein rations AND because each bird has the amount of space equal to the size of a sheet of paper in which to live her life. They live their entire lives without enough room to even be able to extend their wings. If you research the conditions surrounding factory farming industry for any kind of meat, it is enough to make you cry, or vomit.