Worried sand might be making my chicks sick

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renochicks

renochicks

In the Brooder
Mar 20, 2016
4
1
12
Reno NV
Hi all,

I have five chicks, all 1 week and 2 days old. They've been healthy. This morning, I put a bit of sand (some stuff from the desert in New Mexico that my sister gave me) into a mason jar cap for them to play with. Now, they are all huddled far away from their heat source together, which tells me something isn't right.

Did they eat the sand and hurt themselves? Is there anything I can do that will counteract this? When I interact with them they become more lively, but their huddling definitely indicates to me that they're not feeling well. I did bring the heat lamp up a bit in case they are too warm.

Thanks!
 
Do their crops feel like they're full of sand? Babies tend to put things in their mouths that they shouldn't, so they may have eaten it. If you feel sand, you might try giving them fluids with an eyedropper to help them move it through.
 
Chickens eat sand, it is good for them, they use it for digesting things like grass and insects. Now I do not know if maybe there was something on the sand that would make them ill. Just give them lots of water and hopefully they are fine, but grit is a good thing.
 
OrganicFarmWife said:
Chickens eat sand, it is good for them, they use it for digesting things like grass and insects. Now I do not know if maybe there was something on the sand that would make them ill. Just give them lots of water and hopefully they are fine, but grit is a good thing.
Click to expand...


Yes, but if they eat too much sand all at once it can cause an impaction.
 
Thanks for the replies! I went to check on them about an hour after I posted and they were eating. Just went down and they were resting, but not huddled. I will check their throats. Thank you so much!
 

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