New chick pipping-in incubator-have questions

[chickalicia]

Today is my first time an egg hatch. It's still pipping through egg. If that's how I explain it. It is in incubator and hopefully more to come soon after my question is what kind of home to I provide inside house for them. What do I do?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

You'll need a brooder set up. This can be as simple as a cardboard box or plastic tote. Heated on one end with a light bulb or other means to provide heated area in brooder 90F. On other end food and water dispensers. The flooring I like to use pine shavings though cover them with paper towels for first days- they'll shred the paper in few days. The idea is for a non slippery surface and paper towels for more level surface first few days when they are weak from hatching.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

I use a metal shade clamp on light fixture for bulb heat source. for a small brooder a 60W bulb is plenty of heat but if you've an old 100W you'd simply raise the light up some. CATION: make sure the lamp is secured well, you can start a fire with poorly secured lighting or heating implements.

The hatched chicks can stay in the brooder for a day or two until you set up a brooder for them. Technically they don't need food for two plus days from hatch. I put them in a brooder with feed and water at good intervals during the hatch. Ya know, when no pips are visible on unhatched eggs quickly take out the chicks that have hatched.

 

[chickalicia]

She made it at noon. She's precious! I got a plastic tote cleaned it out and hung a heat lamp above it securely waiting to see if it's 90 degrees inside. I put on the bottom first cardboard then a puddle pad (new) that I have for my puppy. I don't have the actual water and feed dish can just a small plastic one work until I do? There are two more I believe pipping through very small pip hole. But I feel I need to take her out because she keeps knocking them around and Iam afraid it will roll over wrong way.

 

[lazy gardener]

You can first put her food right on top of the paper towels. She'll probably explore it but not need to eat for a while. The biggest risk of putting a plain water dish in the brooder is that the chicks are drawn to the water, and walk through it, sometimes fall in and drown. You can work around this by using a shallow saucer, and putting a custard cup or other small bowl upside down in the middle, so there is just a bit of water around the edges for them to drink from. I usually put a ring of marbles in the dish, so they don't try to sit in the water. They'll sip the water from between the marbles. I'd not open that incubator until all of the chicks that are going to hatch, have actually hatched and dried off. You run more risk of damage to those other chicks by opening the incubator to take out the first baby. Best policy is: hands off that incubator until they all have hatched!

 

[chickalicia]

Ok. Oops. I did already. The others so far are good moving a lot and chirping. Thank God. Thank u for the advice w marbles I wil try that. Also the food. It's the pellet looking one right. I forget the name.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Keep the heat to one end of tote so they can go to other side if they get too hot. By providing a range of temp they will nap where they are most comfortable. Actual heat lamps(150 to 250W) are far too hot for small brooders.

 

[lazy gardener]

Sometimes the starter crumbles are too big for the chicks to eat. I watch them, and if they have a hard time with them during the first couple of days, I buzz them through my blender. You'll know if they seem to have problems with the size of the crumbles.

 

[chickalicia]

Thank you !! I have two now. So proud lol. Beautiful too. Brown with gold feather streaks and one has white tips on wings the other has light brown on wings. Their doing good. Chirping up a storm lol. Up a bit tonight waiting for others. Put food on bottom and on dish w bit of water added to it. And a small lid with marbles polished rocks in them so they can just sip it. Very excited.

Where is the info here on first week second and so on. When to put em out doors and with other chickens rooster. I think my hens four - five or all give have gone broody. Three nests. About 32 eggs altogether. I need to mark em and eat others. Or something. Thank u again for everyone's help.