12 day old keeps twitching/shaking her head. Hoping she’s ok.

[Nancynicki]

Our favorite 12 day old chick started twitching/shaking her head often, seemingly uncontrollably. She’s been the alpha of the brooder since day one and loves her cuddle time. I recognize there is a fair amount of chaos in the house during this video clip so it could be nerves, but that’s not terribly unusual due to 7 kids in our house, and it just started a day or two ago. She does it both in the brooder and while being held.

Further details if it makes any difference:
We had 6, found out there was a chick mixup at pickup so at a week old 3 of ours stayed, 3 got traded with the family who’d had our layers (we had her meat birds), plus two extras (from the same hatchling group) came home with our keepers and are being chick-sat for a few days.
So now the brooder has 3 of our originals, including the alpha who is twitching, and 5 newbies who spent the first week of life on someone else’s farm.

We did take our 3 old timers out to check out the (just constructed) coup and free range for an hour or so a couple days ago. Also they are starting to take short flights. So not sure if a fall/crash could cause this?
Thank you!

 

[SurferchickinSB]

Our favorite 12 day old chick started twitching/shaking her head often, seemingly uncontrollably. She’s been the alpha of the brooder since day one and loves her cuddle time. I recognize there is a fair amount of chaos in the house during this video clip so it could be nerves, but that’s not terribly unusual due to 7 kids in our house, and it just started a day or two ago. She does it both in the brooder and while being held.

Further details if it makes any difference:
We had 6, found out there was a chick mixup at pickup so at a week old 3 of ours stayed, 3 got traded with the family who’d had our layers (we had her meat birds), plus two extras (from the same hatchling group) came home with our keepers and are being chick-sat for a few days.
So now the brooder has 3 of our originals, including the alpha who is twitching, and 5 newbies who spent the first week of life on someone else’s farm.

We did take our 3 old timers out to check out the (just constructed) coup and free range for an hour or so a couple days ago. Also they are starting to take short flights. So not sure if a fall/crash could cause this?
Thank you!

Not sure, but do you think it’s a possibility that the new chicks could have brought in some type of disease?

 

[Nancynicki]

Not sure, but do you think it’s a possibility that the new chicks could have brought in some type of disease?

That’s my concern. We’ve never had any chicks before and everything is new and clean here. Not that they couldn’t still get something but don’t know how really.

 

[SurferchickinSB]

That’s my concern. We’ve never had any chicks before and everything is new and clean here. Not that they couldn’t still get something but don’t know how really.

What kind of food do you feed them? Do you feed them chick starter? Maybe try adding some of the chick vitamins to their water and see what happens. How does your little chick seem today?

 

[Tonyroo]

That head movement reminds me of my chick trying to get rid of something on its beak or nasal irritant.

 

[Nancynicki]

What kind of food do you feed them? Do you feed them chick starter? Maybe try adding some of the chick vitamins to their water and see what happens. How does your little chick seem today?

They are on the medicated chick started from Tractor Supply. We started adding save a chick or something like that probiotics to their water about a week ago.

Still doing it today. On the up side she isn’t doing any worse.

 

[Orion ZyGarian]

Any news on this?

 

[Nancynicki]

Any news on this?

She still has the twitch, though it seems to have slowed a fair amount. But she keeps growing and developing just fine. So I guess we’ll see.