HELP! 3 day old chick listless not eating/drinking

[mrskenmore]

Hi Everyone,

I just came back from a house call at a friends house- she picked up 9 day old chicks on Thursday at the local agway. Everyone was doing fine until today- one of her golden laced wyandottes started to not be able to walk, stopped eating and drinking. I ran over there with some sav-a-chick and started to spoon feed it to her. She was able to poop twice while I was there in a two hour time period. (her vent is clear) She is not eating and is very weak on her feet. Any suggestions? We isolated her in her own box, checked the temp (95 degrees) and are keeping an eye on her. This literally just started to happen at about 2 pm today and it is 6 pm now. Please let me know what you think it could be and what we can do to help her. Right now she is lying down with her eyes closed and head up and her breathing is normal.

Thanks so much for any help/suggestions!

 

[boskelli1571]

Hello - you are doing the right things for her. Sadly, some chicks just die for no apparent reason. All you can do is feed her, keep her vent clear and offer up prayers....

please keep us posted,

 

[mrskenmore]

Morning Update:

So the chick (We are calling her DQ) made it through the night. She is currently in the isolation infirmary weakly walking, peeping, pooping and lightly eating and drinking. This is a 180 because as of last night she was on her side barely breathing. Finger crossed and positive thoughts that she pulls through!

PS- Any thoughts as to what is wrong? I told my friend pooping, peeping eating and drinking are all good signs!

 

[boskelli1571]

Morning Update:

So the chick (We are calling her DQ) made it through the night. She is currently in the isolation infirmary weakly walking, peeping, pooping and lightly eating and drinking. This is a 180 because as of last night she was on her side barely breathing. Finger crossed and positive thoughts that she pulls through!

PS- Any thoughts as to what is wrong? I told my friend pooping, peeping eating and drinking are all good signs!

Indeed - all good signs!

as for what's wrong...........likely you will never know..

 

[mrskenmore]

Afternoon Update:

DQ is now eating and drinking- very weak standing but chirping and trying to jump out of the box. Any thoughts on next steps? I am concerned that she is still weak on her feet. When should she be introduced back in with the other 8 chicks- or should 1 or 2 be brought to her to encourage her to get better.

Any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[lazy gardener]

I am a fan of Poultry Nutri-Drench. It's an excellent product. You can put some in the water for all the chicks. You can also give a drop full strength to the chick with bigger issues. I NEVER put a drop of anything in my chick's mouths. What I do is: hold the chick, and put the liquid up to the beak so the chick can "wick" it in.

 

[mrskenmore]

Thanks so much- is this different than sav-a-chick? We diluted that into a gallon of cool water yesterday and that is what she is drinking. Will Poltry Nutri-Drench help her walk?

 

[boskelli1571]

Afternoon Update:

DQ is now eating and drinking- very weak standing but chirping and trying to jump out of the box. Any thoughts on next steps? I am concerned that she is still weak on her feet. When should she be introduced back in with the other 8 chicks- or should 1 or 2 be brought to her to encourage her to get better.

Any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

I would give her a couple of days to continue her progress, since she is still weak, likely the others will pick on her. Take it on a day by day basis. When she is much improved, put her back with the others, monitor closely for the first couple of days tho'.

 

[mrskenmore]

Morning Update:

DQ is doing much better- she is drinking, cheeping, walking, jumping and pooping like a normal chick- the nutri-drench treatment starts today. The one thing my friend has noticed is that she is a picky eater. She is eating when encouraged, but does not seem to have the appetite of a normal chick. She doesn't like hard boiled egg so I recommended a tiny bit of yogurt. She will eat the crumble if it is floating on top of her water.

Thoughts?

Also- I just wanted to thank everyone on this website for their continued help and support. This chick never would have made it if it weren't for the knowledge I have learned here over the past year along with the knowledge I gained by writing about this particular chick. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I will keep you posted on DQ's continued progress!

 

[boskelli1571]

Morning Update:

DQ is doing much better- she is drinking, cheeping, walking, jumping and pooping like a normal chick- the nutri-drench treatment starts today. The one thing my friend has noticed is that she is a picky eater. She is eating when encouraged, but does not seem to have the appetite of a normal chick. She doesn't like hard boiled egg so I recommended a tiny bit of yogurt. She will eat the crumble if it is floating on top of her water.

Thoughts?

Also- I just wanted to thank everyone on this website for their continued help and support. This chick never would have made it if it weren't for the knowledge I have learned here over the past year along with the knowledge I gained by writing about this particular chick. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I will keep you posted on DQ's continued progress!

Good news indeed! Have you tried making a sloppy mash out of the crumble? That way she will get sufficient hydration and hopefully enjoy the crumble as well. You could always crush up a few mealwworms into 'dust' and add them in for protein.