Peachicks Not Eating

I am really worried about two of my three peachicks. They were born approximately four days ago, and since then, two of the peachicks have not eaten anything. They drink water, but no solid food. The third chick has been eating on it's own since day one, though. I've tried giving them egg yolks, chick starter feed softened and mixed with egg and sugar, softened chick starter feed, watery chick starter feed (to see if they'll eat/drink it since they do drink water). I've tried sprinkling the food from above while making various noises. I've pecked at the food with my fingers, or even swirling my finger in the food. Nothing has worked so far. Earlier, we tried to open their beak and put food in it but we can't do that all the time. I'm just at a loss here. How do I teach them to eat?

A curious thing I've noticed is, when the chick that eats is eating, the other two peck at her beak. I've heard some chicks prefer to eat from their mother's beaks. Could this be the case with my chicks? In which case, how would I simulate that?

Try wetting down their food till it is almost a watery mush and see if that helps.
soft not runny scrambled eggs are good also, i start all my fowl with scrambled eggs.

I have had wee peas hatch with eating problems finger feeding helped but having other peas eating helped more.
Peas don't eat like chicken chicks they are picky eaters

Try live crickets or mealworms.

-Kathy

This topic comes up at least a couple of times a year. 99% of the time it is just over worrying. We have hatched hundreds of peachicks and we have never lost one because it failed to start eating regular crumbles. I have never shown the first one how or what to eat. Unless the chick is obviously sick I recommend putting it in the brooder box with food and water and leaving it alone. Let nature work. I would worry way more about the stress of trying to make them eat. Peafowl just don't attack food like other birds. They mostly eat as chicks before you wake up. If they were normal babies they still have digestive systems flooded with yolk even at four or more days. If they are taking water they are fine.

We don't have a bunch of experience with hens hatching chicks but I have never seen a hen feed her young. All peachicks will strike the beak of the other chicks. I honestly don't know if this is to take food, hack off the unnatural egg tooth or just a game.

The chicken hens that I have raising several of mine will hold food in their beaks for the chicks to eat, and I have read that peahens will do the same, but I've never actually seen it.

-Kathy

ETA: The hens I have raising the chicks were treated with metronidazole and fenbendazole *before* the peachicks hatched.

When our peahen moms find some interesting food, they will make that "Look, it's something good to eat!" noise, pick up the food (ie blueberry) and drop it a few times to get the attention of the chick. I have also seen a chick take something out of mom's beak.

Although this occurs when it's a new food that the chicks might not have seen before, the hens seem to compulsively make the noise and pick up and drop food whether or not it's necessary. That is to say, the chicks can be just eating away and the moms will do it anyways as though they don't notice the chicks are already eating.

new 2 pfowl said:

When our peahen moms find some interesting food, they will make that "Look, it's something good to eat!" noise, pick up the food (ie blueberry) and drop it a few times to get the attention of the chick. I have also seen a chick take something out of mom's beak.

Although this occurs when it's a new food that the chicks might not have seen before, the hens seem to compulsively make the noise and pick up and drop food whether or not it's necessary. That is to say, the chicks can be just eating away and the moms will do it anyways as though they don't notice the chicks are already eating.

Click to expand...

So just like chickens! Good to know.

-Kathy

new 2 pfowl said:

When our peahen moms find some interesting food, they will make that "Look, it's something good to eat!" noise, pick up the food (ie blueberry) and drop it a few times to get the attention of the chick. I have also seen a chick take something out of mom's beak.

Although this occurs when it's a new food that the chicks might not have seen before, the hens seem to compulsively make the noise and pick up and drop food whether or not it's necessary. That is to say, the chicks can be just eating away and the moms will do it anyways as though they don't notice the chicks are already eating.

Click to expand...

Same here my poor hen has 20 babies

I know this is an old thread, but I have a question related to the initial question. I have three peachicks hatched by a peahen about 4 days ago. Two of the chicks appear fine - I don't really see them eat and drink like chicken chicks do, but they are active and attentive to Mom. When she sits down, they dive under her.

The third peachick has been "a runt" from the start. It appears somewhat weak and wobbly. It doesn't appear to eat at all and just stands near the mom but doesn't go under her to keep warm. I will push it under her sometimes, but within a few minutes it is back out (I haven't seen whether the peahen kicks it out or it just comes out on its own).

I have been hand feeding it enriched water, scrambled eggs and this afternoon added mash (the food for them softened in water). When I do this, the chick will swallow the food but didn't eat anything on its own until I tried the mash, and then when I gently pushed its beak into the food a couple of times it did gobble some up on its own. It does swallow what I put in its beak. It spit out the hard dry feed (medicated chick starter with Kibble added).

It doesn't have any pep, it seems slightly wobbly when it stands - in fact, I have never seen it sit. It seems to always fall backwards a bit when I first set it down. I understand that a peachicks appetite is not that of a chicken chick, but this one is obviously not doing as well as the other two, and frankly appears to have been rejected by the peahen. The peahen even jumped up on a straw bale this afternoon, along with the other two chicks and has been there for the last hour or so. I put the third chick under her, and when I checked a few minutes later, it was on the floor.

So I have stuck it in the incubator (for heat) and will probably set up a brooder tonight. I have not seen any poop. I do have lots of chickens, and these chicks are in a coop that has been exposed to those chickens over the last few years.

Thoughts about the brooder idea?
Is it too early for a peachick to have coccidiosis or ???
Should I just assume it is sick and give it medication?
If so, what is the dose and should I go ahead and medicate the other two chicks (and of course, the Mom as she drinks from the same waterer)?
Should I assume the chick will eat on its own when it is ready and just leave the food and water available in the brooder?

I appreciate any comments - thank you!