Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

[duluthralphie]

Yours came with chaperones? How big was the shipping box?

Cute all the way around.


I would think the plywood would be a good idea. I'm sure the chicks would make short work of finding the cold metal floor under the shavings.


Um, a blow dryer?

I rally have no idea since I've never hatched chicks but (hoping I'm wrong) maybe you have a chick with feather problems.

I do not think so. It was one I never helped out of the egg when I should have. When I decided to help it, it was completely dry in the egg.

 

[aart]

BUT I have a non-fluffing chick





Any idea how to get her to fluff?

Dried egg gunk, you can just wait and it will clean it off itself....or.....you can gently 'preen' the down to remove the dried gunk so it will fluff up.
Grab a bit of the down in fingertips and move finger tips back and forth just a tiny bit without pulling.
Soft toothbrush might work too.

 

[Coop de Grass]

Him/she looks pretty newly hatched... how old in those photos? Mine looked like that immediately after hatch and then fluffed out in the incubator. Didn't take more than an hour or two, possibly less.

 

[duluthralphie]

Him/she looks pretty newly hatched... how old in those photos? Mine looked like that immediately after hatch and then fluffed out in the incubator. Didn't take more than an hour or two, possibly less.

It is 36 hours old,

 

[bruceha2000]

Dried egg gunk, you can just wait and it will clean it off itself....or.....you can gently 'preen' the down to remove the dried gunk so it will fluff up.
Grab a bit of the down in fingertips and move finger tips back and forth just a tiny bit without pulling.
Soft toothbrush might work too.

Fortunately someone who has a clue has answered. And I am very glad I was wrong!

 

[lazy gardener]

You can do all of the above or you can give it a warm bath, followed by a towel dry. If you go that route, be sure to get it very dry before allowing it to cool down.

 

[COChix]

You can do all of the above or you can give it a warm bath, followed by a towel dry.  If you go that route, be sure to get it very dry before allowing it to cool down.  

That is what we did last year after we had one that didn't fluff overnight, upon inspection, her coat felt hard. It was egg like @aart said.

 

[lazy gardener]

Yep, feels like shellac.

 

[aart]

Quote: I remember the first one I had like that, kinda freaked me out...and it was only just a patch of it on it's back.
Had a few the last batch that were really shellacked all over.
Didn't want to soak the chick, or even get it wet.
Found an old toothbrush worked pretty good, especially where it's really stuck to the skin...like a tiny chick scrubbrush.

 

[duluthralphie]

18 Creamettes in a blanket!!