The first three days of a chick's life

Newly hatched chicks spend a lot of time sleeping. One minute they are pecking at crumbs; the next they are lying down with their heads resting on the floor. It can look alarming when you have not raised chicks before.

The important difference is how they behave when awake. A healthy chick should gradually become alert, move towards warmth when needed, and begin finding food and water. A chick who cannot stand, stays apart or keeps crying needs attention.

Before the chicks arrive

Prepare the brooder before hatch day or collection day. Clean it, let it dry and run the heat source long enough to check that it works reliably.

Provide a warm area and a cooler area. Under a conventional heat source, a starting warm-zone temperature of about 32–35°C at chick height is commonly used during the first week. Watch the chicks as well as the thermometer. Brooder plates work differently: follow the maker's height and room-temperature instructions rather than trying to heat the whole enclosure to that temperature.

Chicks packed tightly together and calling loudly may be cold. Chicks avoiding the heat, panting or holding their wings out may be too hot. Comfortable chicks move between resting, eating and drinking without constant distress calls.

Secure heating equipment exactly as directed. Heat lamps can start fires, particularly over dry bedding. Keep electrical connections dry and have a safe plan for a power failure.

Day one: dry, warm and settled

If you are hatching chicks, allow them to dry and fluff up in the incubator before moving them to the prepared brooder. Avoid repeatedly opening the incubator while other eggs are hatching. Follow the machine's instructions and remove dry chicks in sensible batches.

The absorbed yolk provides a reserve after hatch, but it is not a reason to deliberately delay food and water. Once chicks are in the brooder, offer both straight away.

Use a shallow chick drinker that prevents chicks climbing in and becoming soaked. Show them where it is. If helping an individual chick, briefly touch only the tip of its beak to the water and let it swallow by itself. Never submerge its nostrils or squirt water into its mouth.

Offer a complete chick starter in a low feeder. Tapping beside the feed can encourage exploration. Do not replace starter with bread, grain, egg or household scraps.

Day two: check each chick, not just the group

Watch every chick eat and drink. A group may look settled while one smaller chick is being pushed away.

Check the vent, which is the opening where droppings leave the body. Dried droppings can sometimes block it. If it is blocked, soften the droppings gently with warm water on a soft cloth or cotton pad, working only around the affected area. Do not pull dry crusts from the skin. Dry the chick carefully and return it to warmth.

The navel is a separate area on the belly. Do not pick at a navel scab or pull anything attached to it. A swollen, wet, bleeding or bad-smelling navel needs veterinary advice.

Repeated vent blockage, poor balance or unusual weakness should prompt a review of brooder conditions and a call for advice.

Keep watching for coccidiosis as chicks grow. Persistent diarrhoea, unusual tiredness, fluffed feathers and poor appetite can be signs of coccidiosis, a disease caused by tiny parasites that damage the gut. Blood may appear in the droppings, but it is not present in every case. A pasted vent on its own does not mean a chick has coccidiosis. The disease takes several days to develop after exposure, so it is not a typical explanation for illness in a chick only two days old; brooder problems, dehydration and other infections also need consideration.

When to call a vet: Seek veterinary advice promptly if diarrhoea persists, a chick becomes weak or stops eating or drinking, or several chicks show similar signs. Blood in droppings, inability to stand, rapid deterioration or sudden deaths need urgent attention. Do not wait for blood to appear before asking for help. Young chicks can decline quickly, and a vet can help identify the cause and advise the right treatment rather than guessing.

Day three: build a steady routine

By now, chicks should be finding their feed and drinker more confidently. Keep water fresh, remove damp bedding and check that every chick can reach the heat source without being crushed.

Short, gentle handling is enough. Let them rest and keep visitors, pets and unnecessary changes to a minimum. Wash your hands after handling chicks or equipment, and keep brooders away from food preparation areas.

Do not add several supplements to the water simply because the chicks are young. Clean water and complete starter are the starting point. Ask the supplier or vet about vaccination history and whether medicated starter suits the chicks you have.

When a chick needs help quickly

Seek prompt veterinary advice for difficult breathing, inability to stand, persistent crying despite correct conditions, a blocked vent that keeps recurring, a swollen navel or failure to eat and drink. Several affected chicks or sudden deaths require urgent investigation.

A Henmergency First Aid Kit from Chuckles Chickens can help you keep basic supplies together. It does not replace a correctly set up brooder or veterinary care. Never force-feed or syringe water into a weak chick unless a vet has shown you how.

Sources and further reading: Extension: brooding poultry hatchlings; University of Georgia: common brooding problems; CDC: backyard poultry hygiene; MSD Veterinary Manual: coccidiosis in poultry.

More Farm Guides for raising healthy chicks

For help choosing bedding and caring for your chicks as they grow, read:

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