2-wk old chick - lazy wing?

[esavvymom]

I have two chicks, 2 weeks old. (Mixed Americauna...home grown and born). We noticed today that one of the chicks, when he is sitting and relaxed, his right wing "sags". When he is up and around, he's fine with it and holds it normal. Flaps around their brooder pen (which right now, is a 50gal Aquarium) just fine. They like to fly up and off of the brooder heater (it's the yellow Brinsea), and seem to have no problem.

I guess my question is should we be concerned?? We've raised chicks before, and I've not seen any do this, but then again, we never had them sitting in an area of the house where we could see them all the time through glass.

 

[lazy gardener]

Pic?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Pictures or a video would be great

 

[esavvymom]

I will try to sneak one....and I literally mean sneak. Haha. The second I walk by the box, they pop up and "follow me".

 

[Wyorp Rock]

LOL Nosy little buggers aren't they

 

[esavvymom]

My mother-in-law says they think I'm their momma....I disagree, because they just don't listen to me!! Haha..wait...that's what my boys do too.

 

[esavvymom]

Now it doesn't seem like they are doing it (both were doing it at one point). But they are using their wings just fine when standing, walking, bouncing around. I never did get a picture of them sitting...just standing, of course.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Is it possible what you were seeing is just a chick relaxing - maybe you caught them in the act of dust bathing in their bedding

 

[esavvymom]

Anythings possible. We never had a setup before that allowed us to see so much of them and their antics. I know I saw one of them "bathing" one day last week, rolling around in the spilled food they had scratched all over. That was rather funny. Just amazing how they just instinctively know what to do and how to do it, without a momma showing them.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

LOL They are amazing little things.

I put dirt from my chicken run along with a little sand in my brooder the first week. I usually add a plug of grass or weeds too. This way they have a dust bath and will start to be exposed to pathogens they will encounter when they go outdoors.

If you see them doing it again and it still concerns you, please try to get a video or let us know, we'll try to help you figure it out.