Chick Sick?

Hello everyone,

My little sister's chick, a 3 day old Barred Rock named Dozy, is acting kind of strange. Every few minutes it stands like it is about to poop, with the breast up and wings out, and starts peeping in a really distressed way, like it is in pain. No poop comes out. What is wrong with little Dozy? Otherwise, she acts mostly normal, besides sleeping a whole lot (hence the name) and just being slightly less active then the other chicks, a Silver Polish, Black Sex-link, and Black Australorp. They are all the same age. Do you think that the chick is dehydrated maybe? Or could it be coccidiosis? I am concerned that she cannot poop, except for a very small amount of foamy liquid. I have cleaned her vent several times because of her seeming inability to go to the bathroom.
My sister would be crushed if her little 4-H chick died. We all would. She has the sweetest personality. I honestly have no idea what is wrong and what else I should do.
Please help!

Thanks a bunch in advance because I know that you guys are smart and helpful cookies

~chickenchick

chickenchick12 said:

Hello everyone,

My little sister's chick, a 3 day old Barred Rock named Dozy, is acting kind of strange. Every few minutes it stands like it is about to poop, with the breast up and wings out, and starts peeping in a really distressed way, like it is in pain. No poop comes out. What is wrong with little Dozy? Otherwise, she acts mostly normal, besides sleeping a whole lot (hence the name) and just being slightly less active then the other chicks, a Silver Polish, Black Sex-link, and Black Australorp. They are all the same age. Do you think that the chick is dehydrated maybe? Or could it be coccidiosis? I am concerned that she cannot poop, except for a very small amount of foamy liquid. I have cleaned her vent several times because of her seeming inability to go to the bathroom. 
My sister would be crushed if her little 4-H chick died. We all would. She has the sweetest personality. I honestly have no idea what is wrong and what else I should do.
Please help!

Thanks a bunch in advance because I know that you guys are smart and helpful cookies

~chickenchick

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is she eating, not just pecking but eating, you can check this out by making scrambled eggs and chopping them really tiny. Put her beak in it and see if she will eat it, the other healthy ones should gobble it up and put her beak in the water to make sure she is drinking or drop a drop or two of water on her beak the first time or two she will shake it off but try it 4 or 5 times but don't drop it by her nostrils. This should fix the drinking and not eating because you will find out if that I s the issue in about an hour after she eats and drinks. Some chucks need a bit of help

chickenchick12 said:

Hello everyone,

My little sister's chick, a 3 day old Barred Rock named Dozy, is acting kind of strange. Every few minutes it stands like it is about to poop, with the breast up and wings out, and starts peeping in a really distressed way, like it is in pain. No poop comes out. What is wrong with little Dozy? Otherwise, she acts mostly normal, besides sleeping a whole lot (hence the name) and just being slightly less active then the other chicks, a Silver Polish, Black Sex-link, and Black Australorp. They are all the same age. Do you think that the chick is dehydrated maybe? Or could it be coccidiosis? I am concerned that she cannot poop, except for a very small amount of foamy liquid. I have cleaned her vent several times because of her seeming inability to go to the bathroom. 
My sister would be crushed if her little 4-H chick died. We all would. She has the sweetest personality. I honestly have no idea what is wrong and what else I should do.
Please help!

Thanks a bunch in advance because I know that you guys are smart and helpful cookies

~chickenchick

Click to expand...

also are they warm enough or to warm. They should have a heated area and a cooler area to escape the heat if to hot and visa verse. Keep them away from a draft

Thanks for the comments, guys!
The chicks have access to heat and cool. Dozy seems to be hanging under the heat mostly. She has been drinking water, at least since earlier this morning. And she, like the other chicks, has discovered food and is eating it up like crazy. Any other suggestions out there? She is still frequently stopping to try to poop but to my knowledge she can't.
Thanks again and please help a little more...

~chickenchick

Please help, someone! the poor baby keeps peeping and trying to poo but for some reason it can't.

It sounds like pasty butt. You will need to keep it's vent cleaned and lubricated. Use a cotton bud ( Q-tip) dipped in warm water to gently remove any dried poop on in or around it's vent. I would make a mash with their crumbles and plain yoghurt and water rather than feeding dry crumbles as this has probably started because of dehydration. You can also mix some scrambled eggs into it but the yoghurt should help get the digestive tract working. Better still, ferment their crumbles but that will take a day or two to get going, so use yoghurt in the meantime. After cleaning the vent thoroughly each time, apply a little olive oil with another Q-tip to help stop things caking up again. If you are unable to get all the poop off with a Q-tip and water, consider giving it a little bath in a cup of warm water..... but supervise very carefully so that it doesn't drown and keep very gently rubbing at it's vent to loosen any solidified material. After a few sessions. you should start to see a bit of progress. Take it slow and be very gentle though.

Good luck

Barbara

PS. You only need a small amount of water in the cup, just so that it reaches and soaks it's bottom. And make sure you dry if thoroughly with paper towel afterwards and put it back under the heat lamp.

FOAMY POO CAN BE A SIGN OF COCCIDOSIS. I would get some Amprolium brand name is Corid from the feed store. You would treat all the chicks.if her vent is open it could be Coccidosis in her intestine bothering her. Symptoms of coccidosis is excessive sleepiness, lethergic behavior, may or may not have blood in poop. Take a look online at coccidosis and if YOU think her behavior matches then I would treat her a.s.a.p. Are you positive her vent is open and free of any hard poop that may be dried just up inside the vent opening? if she has dried poo inside the vent hole it could stop her from being able to relieve herself. I would check that first.

realsis said:

FOAMY POO CAN BE A SIGN OF COCCIDOSIS. I would get some Amprolium brand name is Corid from the feed store. You would treat all the chicks.if her vent is open it could be Coccidosis in her intestine bothering her. Symptoms of coccidosis is excessive sleepiness, lethergic behavior, may or may not have blood in poop. Take a look online at coccidosis and if YOU think her behavior matches then I would treat her a.s.a.p. Are you positive her vent is open and free of any hard poop that may be dried just up inside the vent opening? if she has dried poo inside the vent hole it could stop her from being able to relieve herself. I would check that first.

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This would be my suggestion as well.

chickenchick12 said:

Thanks for the comments, guys!
The chicks have access to heat and cool. Dozy seems to be hanging under the heat mostly. She has been drinking water, at least since earlier this morning. And she, like the other chicks, has discovered food and is eating it up like crazy. Any other suggestions out there? She is still frequently stopping to try to poop but to my knowledge she can't.
Thanks again and please help a little more...

~chickenchick

Click to expand...

get her to a vet they do not last very long when sick

Are her eyes bright? If not, there's a problem. Look for crust around her vent or eyes. They should both be clear. Good luck, this happened a while ago, but I gave them some corn meal and it went away. Maybe try this?