5 day old CX chick just laying down

[DobieLover]

You think by 5 days they are old enough to make it back to the heat lamp without direction?

Yes. They are old enough to do that at 1 day old. And it isn't like they are going to die from hypothermia being on the "unheated" side of the brooder inside a house.

restriction around 4 weeks

This is at nearly 1/2 their expected lifespan. That chick looks huge for 5 days old. It could very well be due to excessive growth rate. Waiting to restrict at 4 weeks is to maximize feed to meat conversion in the shortest amount of time hoping to minimize losses. You have one struggling already so I would do what I could to slow down their growth rate and that can only be accomplished by not letting them eat all they want. They need restriction.

If you are uncomfortable with the 12/12, start with 16 on/8 off for a few days while you ease them into more of a restriction. But they shouldn't be able to eat all day and all night. With a heat lamp with no true day/night cycle, they could do that.

Have you gotten a few drops of nutri-drench into that chick yet? Any response? It is also possible the little thing is just a FTT. Losing 1 out of 50 to that would be incredibly good odds.

 

[JeffEdgar87]

Yes. They are old enough to do that at 1 day old. And it isn't like they are going to die from hypothermia being on the "unheated" side of the brooder inside a house.

This is at nearly 1/2 their expected lifespan. That chick looks huge for 5 days old. It could very well be due to excessive growth rate. Waiting to restrict at 4 weeks is to maximize feed to meat conversion in the shortest amount of time hoping to minimize losses. You have one struggling already so I would do what I could to slow down their growth rate and that can only be accomplished by not letting them eat all they want. They need restriction.

If you are uncomfortable with the 12/12, start with 16 on/8 off for a few days while you ease them into more of a restriction. But they shouldn't be able to eat all day and all night. With a heat lamp with no true day/night cycle, they could do that.

Have you gotten a few drops of nutri-drench into that chick yet? Any response? It is also possible the little thing is just a FTT. Losing 1 out of 50 to that would be incredibly good odds.

All good points and thank you for all of the insight! Like i mentioned, this is all brand new to me so I'm trying to figure out how to do it the best way. Good point about that being half their life span, i was planning to start the restriction at the beginning of week two,.but might as well start now based on this situation.

I just picked up the nutri-drench and got back with it now so im going to try to get that fed.

Thanks again for the info!

 

[JeffEdgar87]

It took a little doing but it did seem to eat up the couple drops and swallow it down. Ill for sure take the little food i was offering this one away now and see how things change going into tomorrow.

 

[JeffEdgar87]

It took a little doing but it did seem to eat up the couple drops and swallow it down. Ill for sure take the little food i was offering this one away now and see how things change going into tomorrow.

Unfortunately the chick passed. I had it in a separate container with bedding and food/water and i checked it a bit later and it was gone. At least the other chicks are all still looking healthy and now i have tue vitamins on hand in case of a similar circumstance. Thanks again!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry you lost the little one. She may have been failure to thrive.

I hope the rest do very well.

I'm always amazed at how quickly laying breeds grow and they run out of space in hurry, I can only imagine how much faster the CX will grow, so you may want to be prepared with another space to split up the group in case it gets too crowded.

Are you in a warm(ish) climate where they can go outside to be finished before processing?

 

[JeffEdgar87]

I'm sorry you lost the little one. She may have been failure to thrive.

I hope the rest do very well.

I'm always amazed at how quickly laying breeds grow and they run out of space in hurry, I can only imagine how much faster the CX will grow, so you may want to be prepared with another space to split up the group in case it gets too crowded.

Are you in a warm(ish) climate where they can go outside to be finished before processing?

Thanks, so far so good. Im hoping to have space, not sure if the temps will cooperate. We are in the florida panhandle so the temps hit a low in the low fifties/high forties on average, with some nights as low as 30. I do have a tractor im planning to put them in and move 2 times a day, might have to add a heat lamp for some supplemental heat in the evenings. Do you think that would be good enough to keep them from being too cold?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thanks, so far so good. Im hoping to have space, not sure if the temps will cooperate. We are in the florida panhandle so the temps hit a low in the low fifties/high forties on average, with some nights as low as 30. I do have a tractor im planning to put them in and move 2 times a day, might have to add a heat lamp for some supplemental heat in the evenings. Do you think that would be good enough to keep them from being too cold?

I think it should be o.k. since you have an option to provide supplemental heat if necessary.

They will need protection from wind and if I remember right, they don't tolerate getting wet very well since they don't feather out as heavily as laying breeds. So, if they can stay dry and have a place where wind isn't directly blowing on them, I think it'd be fine.

 

[JeffEdgar87]

I think it should be o.k. since you have an option to provide supplemental heat if necessary.

They will need protection from wind and if I remember right, they don't tolerate getting wet very well since they don't feather out as heavily as laying breeds. So, if they can stay dry and have a place where wind isn't directly blowing on them, I think it'd be fine.

It's and a-frame tractor (8x10 i believe) with a heavy duty tarp that covers probably 80% of the frame, probably a 12-18" or so gap along th bottom of each edge and bars along the top of the a for roosts. I might end up needing to cover the gap a bit, depending on how many of the chickens actually roost in the top part of the tractor (not really sure how much.mobility they typically have when it comes to that kind of thing compared to " normal" chickens.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Doubtful CX will roost.

@Molpet knows a lot more about meat birds than I do, hopefully she can chime in with some suggestions.

 

[Molpet]

Doubtful CX will roost.

@Molpet knows a lot more about meat birds than I do, hopefully she can chime in with some suggestions.

Mine roosted for a couple weeks, before they get too big. Most people who provide a roost is a ft or so up...The biggest problem is when they try to get down. I have found bent keels I think is from hard landings.
They are messy when they don't roost though