3 week old chick is weak, won't eat or drink, and is shaking/ shivering.

[Mary Coleman]

I have a 3 week old chick that used to be with 12 other bantam chicks that I ordered online from ideal. All 13 were perfectly healthy but now I realized that one is shivering uncontrollably, she won't eat or drink even when I dip her beak in the water she just refuses to drink and will shake her head away from the water. And I have not seen her eat today. I separated her from the rest of the chicks fearing that it could possibly be Merricks. (though I had them get a vaccine before I ordered them.) her eyes are clear and when I was trying to get her to drink she was standing normal and suddenly leaped into the air into the sink and could not get out of the sink so I helped her out. So she can move her legs and wings and her eyes are clear so it doesn't sound like Merricks. So what else could it be? Dehydration? Any help would be nice. Thank you.

 

[NewHamp99]

That's a bit unusual. Do you have a a heat lamp for your chicks or any type of heat sources so they can get warm? If not you should see into buying one as chicks do get cold quickly. If this doesn't work I suggest you take that chick to the vet right away.

 

[Mary Coleman]

Yes it was under a heat lamp and I thought that it was cold at first too.

 

[kkowa]

mix some electrolytes with yogurt and thin it a bit with water or (Gatorade/PowerAde if you have no electrolytes) and mix with yogurt. then syringe feed a little at the time keep warm and separate from others until you know what is wrong. also what is her poop like does she have any food in her crop? check and see if she has pasty butt that can cause problems also.

 

[Mary Coleman]

Ok thank you. She does not have pasty bum. And how do you get her to take the food with a syringe? Does it sound like she has merricks? She is a beautiful and sweet bird and I want her to be okay. And does it matter what kind of yogurt? I apologies for all of the questions.

 

[Eggcessive]

She is a bit young to show signs of Mareks. She is probably just exibiting signs of stress or of being a runt. You will have to work with her a lot, putting a dropper or syringe into the side of her beak and feeding small amounts of liquids and giving her time to swallow. Raw egg or scrambled egg would be nourishing. I agree with the electrolytes. There is a commercial chick vitamin/electrolyte mix at the feed stores that you can use. If you could mix a small amount of her water with her crumbles to make a paste like oatmeal, she may eat that. I would put her back in with the others ASAP and only take her out to feed or if they are pecking or trampling her.

 

[Mary Coleman]

Okay thank you guys so much for the help.

 

[Mary Coleman]

I would just like to express my thanks for helping me with the yogurt and electro light idea. I fed her some last night and she ate quite a bit and this morning she ate a little bit of regular food and has begun to stop shivering. She s still a bit wobbly on her feet but is making a great recovery! U guys are amazing and thank you once again!

 

[kkowa]

no problem! that's great shes doing better!

 

[Eggcessive]

It's so nice to hear that she is doing better, and we hope it continues.