Is it normal to be a NERVOUS WRECK?

[amylou22]

We brought home chicks for the first time today! I have 8 babies in my washroom.

And they are making me a nervous wreck. I am so worried that they are hot or cold. Or that the little Buff is sick because it sits directly under the light. Or the black sexlink is hot because it is sleeping away. And they are pecking at each other and I am afraid they are going to hurt someone. Please tell me it is normal to be this nervous with your first batch of chicks.
I need to go to bed and leave them alone.

 

[HeatherLynn]

I love these questions. Yes it is very normal. Plan on checking these chicks pretty much like they were your new born baby. Go ahead and get a good flashlight because when you put them out in their big kid coop you will be out there in the middle of the night the first night or 2 checking on them. OH and if you see them all sprawled out and looking a tad bit " holy crap are they still breathing", thats normal. Thats how the little buggers relax. They relax by making you have a heart attack every time you pass the brooder.

Gotta love baby chicks. Enjoy. In 20 or so short weeks you can relax again. Until next year when you do it all over again.

 

[CowgirlPenny]

Yes, that first week it was like having a newborn all over again. I worried non stop and checked on them everytime I walked by their door,lol. Enjoy them!

 

[amylou22]

I just watched them for 20 mins. One was scaring me, she kept slowly falling over. Getting upright, doing it again.
She was falling asleep standing up.

 

[justbugged]

It's normal to worry about your first batch of chicks. It is not uncommon to lose a chick or two, when first starting out in chicken keeping. Birds tend to be fragile, and not matter how well you care for them some will die any way. I have kept chicken off and on for nearly 30 years, and I still loose chicks from time to time. Sometimes there is something that you can learn to do that makes a difference, and other times there is nothing you can do at all.

 

[caspernc]

x2
I did not KNOW CHICKS will sleep on their sides like they just died!!!!!! Hubby and I had to learn hat one! You can tell the story but unless you see it you just do NOT know!

 

[justbugged]

Quote:
Chicks are just like any kind of baby. They spend a lot of time sleeping at first.

 

[HeatherLynn]

Yea my husband came running in our room to tell me all my polishes were dead. I ran out to check and there they all were chasing each other. He is completely dumbfounded until they settled back down and instantly feel asleep in their sprawled out on their side " look at me I'm playing dead" position. After that he always nudged the box every time he walked by just to make sure. Poor man. He didn't even like the birds and they had him a nervous wreck.

 

[nanawendy]

amylou 22 Still one of my most fav. joys. Have fun and

 

[BrattishTaz]

Relax and enjoy your new babies. If they have food, clean water, a safe enclosure (brooder), and a heat source they will most likely be fine. Sometimes the comments on this site make it sound like you have to do everything perfectly or death is eminent.

That is enough to scare anyone! Hens do not use thermometers or "special" tools and they raise healthy chicks all the time.

I agree you should occasionally check on them. If they are piled (not just snuggled) on top of one another, they are cold. If they are panting or as far away from the light as possible, they are too hot. They will let you know when they are comfortable.

They will peck everything ,including each other, this is normal exploration. As long as they are not causing injury, sit back and enjoy the show.

Now go to bed!