So I had to avert a crisis this morning!!
I have the 7 chicks in the garage in a rabbit hutch.
I have food, water and a heat plate for them.
There’s a bit of a learning curve for store chicks to learn that they need to go underneath to warm themselves.
They seemed to catch on quickly yesterday but I wasn’t sure if they knew where the food and water was.
I dipped their beaks, etc.
I checked them last night before going to bed and all was well.
This morning it was absolute chaos!
I heard loud distressed cheeping and looked in the hutch to see them piled up between the wall and the lid of the heat plate.
My tiniest chick, a porcelain D’Uccle, was in a different area on its back with its head buried underneath the shavings and it was shaking and trembling all over!!!
I quickly grabbed that chick and felt how cold it was.
Omg omg omg!!!
I held it next to my body and heard very faint peeping.
I picked up the others and put them underneath the heat plate and they all seemed to be okay.
I’m still holding the tiny chick next to my skin.
But I still hear extremely loud distress calls...
I lift the heat plate and count...
Six
Only six chicks
Where’s the seventh? The biggest Orpington chick is missing.
I started looking around everywhere and I finally find her underneath the hutch on the concrete garage floor!!
So I picked up that one and her feet were so cold!
I held her too.
She warmed up and I put her back with the others but the D’Uccle was in bad shape.
I took it into the house and mixed some Nutri Drench up and continued to hold it next to me.
It was so weak!
It slowly began to warm but I wanted to help it revive faster.
I got a syringe and pulled some Nutri Drench into it and squirted some in the babies mouth.
It acted like it was swallowing but then it seemed like it was choking

Omg I made it worse!
I tipped the chick upside down trying to make sure it wasn’t aspirating.
It started peeping weakly again so I figured I better stop and just keep it warm.
I had no idea they’d fall through the little rabbit hutch bars!
I feel so bad and stupid.

I had Pippin in the hutch with Cleo for over a month and Cleo never fell through but I guess that’s because she kept close to her mama.
I moved all the chicks to a very large plastic tote with their heat plate, etc.
The tiny D’Uccle has recovered and even was eating and drinking like a champ and they’re all able to find the food and water on their own.