4-5 day old chick help

[rmh0508]

Hi I am new here and new to raising chicks as well, so I will probably be asking lots of questions. First of all I ordered 25 Cochin Bantams from Cackle Hatchery. They came in Friday morning all active and all appeared healthy, none dead and 4 extras. They are in a 150 gallon Rubbermaid water trough with a red heat lamp on one end, medicated chick starter on the other end and water in the middle closer to the lamp. The first day I did do the sugar water and dipped all of their beaks in it as I was taking them out of the box. They were on newspaper but I am now putting in pine shavings.
As I was cleaning the brooder out today I noticed one had a "poopy butt" so I cleaned it as best I could with a warm wet cloth and I separated her in another brooder then I went through he rest of them just in case. There were 7 others who had poopy butts but none as bad as the first.
This was at about 3 this afternoon and she is still "off", she is kinda lethargic. She will get up and move but for just a handfull of steps and she is back down again. She is eating some and drinking but she just isn't the same as the others. And I also want to mention that she is considerably smaller then the others. Could she have been off for a day or so and I did not notice, is that why she is so small? Also what can I do to give her a boost? Should I separate her? Any specific thing to feed her or extra vitamins? I do have some Vital I could mix up and add to the water.
Right now I am just afraid that I am going to loose her and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance...

 

[The Chickeneer]

Well first of all

. The chick probably didn't develope right in the egg, or hatched a day late. You can buy some thing from your local feed store thats kinda like a powder vitamin, probably medicated, stuff you mix into the water she drinks. A lot of people use this for their chicks, im not sure what its called but you could ask an experienced person at the feed store, or hopefully some one here knows what its called and they will post, or you could just google it. Do not worry to much if chikie here is inactive for the first 3 days, but if the chick still bearly walks when its like a week old, then there is prob. no hope. Good Luck

 

[magicpigeon]

I would just keep an eye on your smaller chick, I have raised "runts" before and 9 out of 10 times they still grow up to be normal healthy chicks. Congratulations on your new chcks!

 

[tennesseeckn]

If it's possible she might have had the pasty butt for a while she could be backed up. You could try giving her some bread soaked in olive oil. If you suspect she just needs a boost you can use infant vitamin drops without iron. You don't have to go to a farm store for those. Watch to see if she is eating and drinking. She should go to the feeder every twenty minutes or so. If you suspect she's not you can force vitamin water by dropping it on the top of her beak away from her nostrils. When it runs down to her mouth she should drink.

Good luck.

 

[rmh0508]

Well she is still alive today. I did clean her but again as it was caked up again. She is eating and drinking and I added some vitamin supplement to the water. I had a few others with pasty butts yesterday and they all seem to be better (cleaner) today so hopefully she will perk up more soon. Thanks for the replies....

 

[luvinrunnin]

I think the powder one poster is referring to is Sav-A-Chik which is pretty good stuff. You may have to order it, but it's good to have on hand anyway. You can give the poly-vi-sol without iron in the meantime. Get it from just about anywhere. It's with the childrens vitamins.

 

[rmh0508]

Is the poly-vi-sol a liquid? And how would I administer and how much? I am going to Walmart tomorrow or would Tractor Supply have something?



Quote:

 

[Wimberleytexaschick]

Try putting a little vaseline on the pasty butts (q-tip works well) after cleaning them up. Poop should slide off and save some cleaning for you!

 

[tennesseeckn]

Quote:

The Poly-vi-sol is great, but I believe the Sav-A-Chik has electrolytes, too. Our Tracter Supply carries Sav-A-Chik in the medication section. It comes in small, foil packets.

 

[zookeeper15133]

I read on here of a chick pasty butt mix. It it scrambled eggs & shredded carrots mixed with their feed, there may be some thing else in it. The scrambled egg should give her a great protein boost. Good luck!

Poly-Vi-Sol is a liquid, it comes in a little dropper bottle for infants. Give 2 or 3 drops a day into her beak.

TSC does have Chick Saver. I think it is $2.50 or $3 for a 3 pack. Each makes a gallon.