2 Week Old Chick Dying? Please Help.

[chukster]

Here is the latest.

I just found a bulge under her throat, it is soft to the touch and it is what I would call a distended abdomen in a human. I read on the FAQ before I posted here about a crop problems, etc. (not sure I know where the crop is)

Could this be the issue? Or could we be feeding it too much?

Whatever this is is certainly isn't right and I am sure it is a problem.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks again too all.

 

[boogiedog]

I didn't feed mine through the night - at dusk when the sun went down I let her sleep; first thing in the a.m. I was there with the goop. The eyedropper didn't work well for me either - the thicker formula (more yolk) that I could put on the end of a toothpick worked best. (I could also carefully use the pick end to open her beak just a bit, which would make her respond by opening her mouth)

I kept her in an un-ac'd room (temps here around 60-70ish) and put a heating pad (not electric, but the one you heat the micro and it stays warm for a while) under a towel at one side so she could move onto it or off it easily, and her regular chick food and water on the other side. I used a smallish box - about 1' by 1.5' so she could get to everything fairly easily. I also kept her near her the other peeps so she could hear them.

In the a.m. , when the sun came up and they would normally start eating I would go in and get her to take some of the formula. I'd make her take some every 1 hr or so. I would check the crop for fullness. When full, I'd stop. Within a couple days she started eating other food on her own more regularly, but I'd still offer her goop - which she learned was GOOD and could hardly wait for me to get the toothpick near her!

Sounds like the fsoft bulge you are feeling the crop - it should be somewhat firm (and can feel surprisingly large in a small chick when they are full). If it is soft it is likely empty so you will want to try and get some food in her and feel for the difference.

Good luck - all you can do is try. It is so hard when these little guys get sick - sometimes that is just the way it was intended and there is not much we can do. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Good luck!

 

[chukster]

Thanks sooooo much for all of the info.....I guess it is out of our hands now.

We will keep feeding as best we can, and keep her warm and cozy.

If she makes it through the night then maybe she has a chance.

Thanks all again.

 

[Miss Lydia]

first if she was out from under mom she was probably cold, we had a chick fall out of the nest and couldn't get back in and I thought for sure it would die it was so cold to the touch, but I put it back under mom and kept checking to make sure it stayed there and it was fine in a few hours.