Nightwing907
In the Brooder
- Apr 8, 2021
- 5
- 16
- 21
Hey guys,
So I’ve raised abandoned chicks before, ones that the hen has pushed out or left behind, including one with a leg injury last year. So when I found my hen had left behind one of her chicks and it had trouble standing/walking (it seemed weak on one side, but it was cold when I found it and it revived in my hand), I assumed with a bit of time things would hopefully come right. And Toby is definitely doing better, but now two weeks old and is just increasingly lagging behind in development ie size, weight and feathers behind his siblings, I brought in another chick last week when it seemed like Toby would live as he was lonely, but now the other chick is just getting bigger and bigger and just starting to get bullyish with him, so will have to sort something.
Sometimes he seems really healthy, just like a normal albeit stumbly healthy chick with good poo, others hes lethargic or flops with loose poo and yesterday he did three bright yellow gooey ones in a row, hasn’t been any more since but know that can’t be good. Wasn’t eating/drinking, I had to take the water out this afternoon as he almost drowned himself in it just before lunch, and now he’s back to healthy Toby walking around eating/drinking. I wonder if this is a fail to thrive thing or something deeper wrong internally or something. Not really sure, thought I might add some high protein dog food or something and see if that helps, or maybe try some more boiled yolks, just not sure. He seems to go so up and down, never had a chick like this, all my other ones, even the one with a leg injury, once they got past that first week were raring to go and he’s still struggling.
So I’ve raised abandoned chicks before, ones that the hen has pushed out or left behind, including one with a leg injury last year. So when I found my hen had left behind one of her chicks and it had trouble standing/walking (it seemed weak on one side, but it was cold when I found it and it revived in my hand), I assumed with a bit of time things would hopefully come right. And Toby is definitely doing better, but now two weeks old and is just increasingly lagging behind in development ie size, weight and feathers behind his siblings, I brought in another chick last week when it seemed like Toby would live as he was lonely, but now the other chick is just getting bigger and bigger and just starting to get bullyish with him, so will have to sort something.
Sometimes he seems really healthy, just like a normal albeit stumbly healthy chick with good poo, others hes lethargic or flops with loose poo and yesterday he did three bright yellow gooey ones in a row, hasn’t been any more since but know that can’t be good. Wasn’t eating/drinking, I had to take the water out this afternoon as he almost drowned himself in it just before lunch, and now he’s back to healthy Toby walking around eating/drinking. I wonder if this is a fail to thrive thing or something deeper wrong internally or something. Not really sure, thought I might add some high protein dog food or something and see if that helps, or maybe try some more boiled yolks, just not sure. He seems to go so up and down, never had a chick like this, all my other ones, even the one with a leg injury, once they got past that first week were raring to go and he’s still struggling.