Since one of my Rhode Island Red chicks hatched three days ago, it hasn't stopped screaming except occasionally when it's dead asleep.  And yes, I mean screaming.  Chirping at the top of it's voice to the point I have to sleep with a fan on in my room to cover the noise from the chick (who is in a box in the bathroom next to my room).  I checked the chick over multiple times to see if something was wrong with it-nothing I could see.  And the temperature was fine so it wasn't cold.  Plus, the other chicks were absolutely fine.  I figured the chick must have something wrong with it and would die, but it's still alive and has continued to scream...until tonight.  I finally called my mother who doesn't have chicken experience, but has baby experience and asked her what she thought.  Find a stuffed animal she said.  A stuffed animal for a chick?  My mother must be crazy I thought, except....take a look for yourself...

And now the chick is chirping contentedly for the first time since it hatched!

(The screamer is at the very bottom of the pile. You can see its little bum sticking out)

Maybe it's a little silly, but I think this is an important lesson of what parents mean to their children and what love means to everyone.  This poor little chick was extra sensitive to the need for love and affection just as human babies as well as older children, teens and even adults desperately need love and affection.  And while the one chick cried out for more attention, all the other chicks were just as quick to cuddle the stuffed animal.  Just because someone doesn't verbalize the need for love doesn't mean they don't want it.  This is what teenagers and husbands (and fathers) are especially prone to do.  They don't realize they need/want the love, are afraid to ask for it or don't know how to ask.  But when it's offered, it's appreciated.  Read more about the importance of love an attention here...