A Persistant Shrieker

[eveliens]

Hi guys, you helped me out last year with my quail eggs (had 2 successful hatches this summer). This year I have some bantam chicks I ordered in the mail. I'm new to chicks but not to birds.

Ordered 13 SR bantam + 6 EE pullets a week ago. They had a brief and successful trip through the mail, everyone came out of the box lively, immediately eating/drinking. Clear eyes/nose, clean vents, yada yada. The EEs went to a new home and are doing well, the bantams stayed with me and 12 are doing great.

Unlucky #13, however, is a shrieker. He shrieks frequently. It is shrill, loud and persistent - I've seen him even shrieking while half asleep. The other chicks occasionally call out for legitimate reasons, but 90% of the time if I go out to respond to a distress call, it is this chick standing in the middle of the cage while the rest of the chicks are happily minding their own business. He is eating/drinking/acitve, his vent and crop are not impacted, there are no obvious signs of injury or problems. He is growing and active. My more chicken savvy friends say there's probably something internally wrong with him and don't get too attached.

Are some chicks just more fussy than others? Is there a way to cut down on the shreiking - it is getting on peoples' nerves and I'm getting complaints because you can hear it pretty much anywhere on the property LOL. I'm sure the neighbors can hear it too!

Edit: I should add he is a sebright bantam, if breed matters. Pics of the butt for question tax.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Some birds scream. I have a hen that as a baby screamed constantly, even when she was tucked under mom at night. But yes, usually if they're constantly screaming more than a day or two, something's not right.

As you can see though, she's a healthy hen who had hatched her own chick (technically it's actually her half sister, not her own chick)

 

[eveliens]

Some birds scream. I have a hen that as a baby screamed constantly, even when she was tucked under mom at night. But yes, usually if they're constantly screaming more than a day or two, something's not right.

As you can see though, she's a healthy hen who had hatched her own chick (technically it's actually her half sister, not her own chick)

Thanks. If he makes it he'll probably go to a new home in a few weeks. The reason I purchased 13 was to hedge my bets on 3-4 hens. Loud and annoying is a big no-no, although unfortunately no one told the person behind us with their dogs and kids haha. I've heard mixed reviews on whether or not sebrights are noisy but given this experience I will probably be keeping the mille fleurs and Japanese bantams. Shame, the sebrights are pretty, but 3 of them are 'chatty' and then 1 is the shrieker. I can't begin to explain how SHRILL he is, even compared to the other chicks - it is ear-piercing.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Thanks. If he makes it he'll probably go to a new home in a few weeks. The reason I purchased 13 was to hedge my bets on 3-4 hens. Loud and annoying is a big no-no, although unfortunately no one told the person behind us with their dogs and kids haha. I've heard mixed reviews on whether or not sebrights are noisy but given this experience I will probably be keeping the mille fleurs and Japanese bantams. Shame, the sebrights are pretty, but 3 of them are 'chatty' and then 1 is the shrieker. I can't begin to explain how SHRILL he is, even compared to the other chicks - it is ear-piercing.

My sebright aren't loud persay, but they definately are chatty

 

[theoldchick]

Can you show us a video of what he/she is doing?

 

[eveliens]

Can you show us a video of what he/she is doing?

Sure, next I hear the little siren going off, I'll try to get a video. He seems quieter today.

 

[eveliens]

My sebright aren't loud persay, but they definately are chatty

I don't mind chatty. Hopefully there will be less ear-piercing and more chatter as they get older. I suspect 2-3 out of the 5 are going to be roos, so we'll see in about 4 weeks who is a true contender for the coveted backyard spot LOL

 

[eveliens]

Sorry for the disorganized and hectic cage. They get to eat and drink in the cage from 6am-8am before going out for the day, so it is trashed. I also included a photo of him next to his sibling. There is a slight size difference but it doesn't seem huge. He was also screaming (far more shrilly than in the video) during this 30 second photo session so I'm amazed I got a photo with his little beak shut LOL

Video Evidence of Chick Crimes

 

[eveliens]

I've decided Scream-o is simply very fussy. He's growing, pooping, flying and otherwise perfectly normal - mostly. Not convinced he's all there upstairs but he's functional more or less.

 

[canne50]

Sounds normal to me.