7 week old chick- new (odd) behavior

[tneff24]

Hello! I'm a new Chicken Mom!

We have 4, 7-week old Buff Orpingtons... they are still inside in a
temp controlled pen. Of the 4, we have 1 rambunctious one that
I'm worried about.

She seems somewhat "puffed" up and tucks her head in- just like
she's hunkered down ready to sleep. She appears to be eating and
drinking... just doesn't seem her usual fiesty-self. We had moved the
lamp slightly to get them acclimated to a slightly cooler temp (down
from 80 to 75) about 4 days ago.

Wondering if I should be concerned? Should I separate her from the
rest as a precaution? Or is this just a new "personality-trait". This just
seemed to have changed in the past 36-48 hours.

Thanks!

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. At that age, I would be concerned that she might be showing signs of coccidiosis, an infection of the intestines. Symptoms include, standing hunched or puffed up, poor appetite, sleepiness, and runny poops with mucus or a little blood. You may want to purchase some Corid powder or liquid from your feed store in case you want to treat them all. Dosage is 1 1/2 tsp of powder or 2 tsp of the liquid Corid per gallon of water for 5-7 days, and treat all birds at once. It is not harmful for chicks who look well. Do they have all their feathers yet? If so, they shouldn't need heat, so I would get the heat down, unless the little one is sick. Here is a good link about cocci:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/12/coccidiosis-what-backyard-chicken.html

 

[tneff24]

Thank you for the quick response!

I am going to treat it as cocci. I purchased Corid and treated the water.
From what I read- it is "safe" for all the birds... so I'm erring on the preventative
side.

She seems to be doing better since I gave them the treated water!

Thanks!

 

[Eggcessive]

Great new. Let us know how she gets along.