The three-day old chicks arrived this morning. They all have bright dark eyes and the last little bit of their beak tooth or egg tooth (depending on who you talk to) at the base of their beaks. When chicks are still in the egg shell, their beaks and toes are still too soft to break the shell from the inside. The little tooth becomes their escape hammer. That tooth is used to help the chicks break through the egg shell when hatching and it falls off in a few days after hatching. So this literally lets me know that the chicks are only a few days of age.
Normally, I start my new flocks in the smaller cage to help keep them warmer and it is easier to care for them because I can simply reach in and grab which ever chick, as needed. This year, I'm taking a chance by just putting them in the larger 3.5x4' cage at the start. The sheets clothespinned around the sides is to minimize drafts and to help them to feel safer. I don't think the chicks, at least this week will venture to the far side of the cage, away from the door. But sometimes they will all find a corner to huddle in, away from the warmer, because they get lost. I'll check on them a lot this first week. If necessary, I can always put a barrier down the middle to keep them near the front of the cage. But for now, I truly think they will stay near the front because that's where the food, water and the low brooder warmer is located.
As usual, I have their little poop sheets down. I need to put three of them out to cover the floor of the whole cage. I sewed the edges of the sheets to help minimize trips and snags by their tiny little toes. What I should probably do is go to Salvation Army and pick up a couple of used sheets that I can cut to size. But, for now I think this will work. By next week, they will be in shavings and the sheets will be bleached and prepped for the spring chick flock.
I already set up the taller warmer for when the chicks are bigger in a couple weeks. Since we have eight chicks, and the Cornish Cross grow so rapidly, within two weeks, they won't all fit under the single brooder. This allows them to choose a warmer to sleep under until they are ready to go outside which should be about three to four weeks from now with the warm summer temps.
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| Five 3-day old Cornish Cross Chicks |
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| Two Chicks Enjoying the warmer |
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| Chicks near Food and Water |
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| Egg Tooth on beak. |
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| Blurry Chicks |
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| 2nd Warming Station |
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| Chicks getting bored with the Person |
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