Horrible shipping experience and need some advice

FreckledFarmer

In the Brooder
7 Years
May 31, 2012
31
0
22
I ordered 8 chicks (my min. allowed order for my area was 7) from Mypetchicken.com. They were shipped on Monday and arrived this morning. When I got to the post office they told me that they believed I lost some because the boxed smelled horrible. I had to ride 12 minutes home with my two children in the car and a box that smelled like death. I got home I tried to open the box without the children in the room, my 2 month old was crying, my 2 year old could not be distracted.. he just wanted to see the chickens. I was able to open the box without him being able to see inside though. I had one very very dead chick and another who had been trampled almost to death. The remaining 6 seemed fine but they all had the nastiness from the dead one on them. I had to call my friend who's farm is down the road to come and help me. I have never owned chicks before and was at a loss of what to do with the injured chick.

We gave the chick electrolites and put her in a box by herself in the brooder, so she could still be under the light. She was holding both legs out to one side and wouldn't move them, so my friend said she believed I was going to loose that one too.

Fast forward a few hours later... I pulled the chick out of the box again to give her more water with electrolites and see if she would eat. She took the water happily and ate one crumble out of my hand. She is now moving both legs and actually putting weight on one of them, but since she is still not putting weight on the other she still isn't standing. She will move both wings but when I hold her she holds one of the wings out. She doesn't act as if she is in pain at all, even when I am moving her legs and wings, and she doesn't appear to have any visible injuries. She is wide eyed and is chirping at me as I hold her. I am at a loss of what to do now. She seems to be getting better and is all fluffed out and pretty but how handle it if she continues to not stand? She is also covered in the nastiness from the dead chick because she was laying on her. My friend said they would clean themselves and she didn't suggest that I got them wet but this chick reeks and I am not sure she can reach her back where the nastiness is. Can I clean her up somehow? My house still reeks of death and I think it is mostly her. What do I do now? Would she be acting like she is in pain? How do I help her?

Also... The chicks are pecking at each other beaks. Is this normal? It really doesn't seem too aggressive and they aren't drawing blood or anything. Part of me wonders if it is because they have the stuff from the dead chick on them but they are only pecking at each other's beaks, not feet or bodies. Is this a "pecking order" type thing. They are all different breeds and are only days old.
 
If it were me, I'd give them a nice warm bath. We've done it with newly hatched sticky chicks and they are fine. I generally wouldn't advise using soap, but if you have a very mild, non-perfume soap a tiny bit will help get rid of the smell even better. Just get the water to 100F and keep them warm. It's normal for chicks to occasionally peck at each others' beaks, but not incessantly. Are you using a red light for the brooder or a white light? It's believed using a red light cuts down on cannibalism or pecking at each other.

Glad to hear most of the chicks made it and the one chick is improving.
 
I am using a red light. I might wait until my husband gets home to bathe them. At least that one needs a bath.
 
I wouldn't say that that is a "horrible" shipping experience. I've heard of some folks getting their box with all/most of the chicks dead inside. I was told to open the box at the PO so the postal worker could verify for dead or almost dead chicks if you had a problem with the hatchery not wanting to give a refund. I just received a shipment and had 1 dead on arrival and 1 die shortly after I got them home. Some chicks just cannot handle the stress of being shipped. That's why the hatcheries put in an extra or two.
Its totally normal for chicks to peck at each other. I put a tupperware lid in the brooder and sprinkle crumble on it to give them something to occupy their minds and beaks.
 
Sorry to hear about losing the one chick but that's not too horrible an experience. Most of them survived and it sounds like one is recuperating, so all is not lost. I personally would dampen a paper towel with a little warm water and wipe the one down and get it dried off under the heat lamp pretty quickly. I don't have experience with actually bathing new chicks, so maybe others with experience can tell you.

I just received 10 beautiful chicks all the way from the west coast to the east coast today and all are well and happy. I was holding my breath, hoping that all would make it and they did.
 
The horrible part wasn't loosing the chick. I had prepared myself for that. The horrible part was the condition of the chick I lost. It was in pieces and the other chicks were covered in the mess from the dead chick. That and the smell and having to drive home with the smell not knowing what I was going to find. The chick had obviously been dead for quite a while. I'm not sure why I thought I could handle it with both kids alone. This was my first time and didn't think I was going to do be dealing with such a mess.

I think I might still loose the one chick. She gets better and then takes two steps back. I am at a loss of what to do next. I'm just giving her electrolytes and TLC. I hope she recovers. She is a beautiful little chick.
 
Also, I have been encouraging her to eat the best I can but she is having a hard time. I will put a crumble near her beak and when she opens it I will put it in for her but she struggles a little once she has it in her mouth. Should I soak her crumbles? She wont take it out of my hand or off a plate.

She also still isn't standing. When I woke up this morning she was sitting up on her legs but she has gone back to laying on her side.
 
Are you keeping her hydrated, dipping her beak in the water off and on throughout the day? Dehydration will kill her a lot faster than starvation.
 

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