Chicks Day 1

Here is last nights video of my new chicks. I apologize for not getting this posted last night, as promised. After returning home I discovered we were having some online difficulties - no, not the technical kind. Do I grrr? Do I sigh? Do I care? Bleh.

Anyway, I have 13 Cuckoo Marans (the "s" is silent) and 8 Ameraucana chicks. Some of them, if you look really closely still have their egg tooth. An egg tooth is a little tooth like bump on the tip of their beak that they use to break out of their shell when hatching. This tooth will dry and fall off in a day or two.

The only thing I didn't mention in the video that I thought about afterwards as I adjusted the heat lamp, was the heat lamp! I am using a 60 watt bulb in a standard clip on heat lamp fixture. Heat is very import to new chicks. In the video notice how they are all clumped together, the heat lamp is too high and they aren't warm enough. After the video I clipped the lamp to the side of the box and draped a towel over it to keep the heat in, leaving about a 2 inch gap along one side for ventilation. After awhile I checked in on them and felt the sides of the box to make sure I wasn't about to start a house fire. The insides were cool to the touch and the chicks had spread out nicely indicating they were very comfortable.

Enjoy the video. Day 2 will be posted shortly. :)