All chicks with impacted crop?

[taylacline]

We got six chicks roughly a week- 2 weeks old. I noticed all of them have a very large, firm crop.

In their brooder is only, medicated feed, bedding, waterer, brooder plate.

Should we be worried about the crops? They all also act normally and keep eating

 

[rosemarythyme]

What kind of bedding?

Have you given them any grit?

Do you leave food in with them all night? If they're getting a true night cycle (no heat lamp emitting light or other source of light near brooder), remove food at night and then check crops in the morning.

 

[Debbie292d]

We got six chicks roughly a week- 2 weeks old. I noticed all of them have a very large, firm crop.

In their brooder is only, medicated feed, bedding, waterer, brooder plate.

Should we be worried about the crops? They all also act normally and keep eating

Ours are a week old and have very large, firm crops too, and keep eating. They're little piggies.

 

[taylacline]

What kind of bedding?

Have you given them any grit?

Do you leave food in with them all night? If they're getting a true night cycle (no heat lamp emitting light or other source of light near brooder), remove food at night and then check crops in the morning.

We removed the food at night and in the morning they were much smaller!

Pine shaving bedding, the same we use for the girls outside

They don't have grit, I was under the understanding that when they are getting just starter and nothing else they don't need grit. Is that incorrect?

 

[HollowOfWisps]

It is normal for them to have larger crops by the end of the day and empty crops in the morning. Their crops will feel firmer when they are full at night and can look almost like there is a ball on the side of their chest.

 

[Debbie292d]

We removed the food at night and in the morning they were much smaller!

Pine shaving bedding, the same we use for the girls outside

They don't have grit, I was under the understanding that when they are getting just starter and nothing else they don't need grit. Is that incorrect?

You're correct. They only need grit when you introduce something else besides chick crumbles to them.

 

[rosemarythyme]

We removed the food at night and in the morning they were much smaller!

Good to hear - that's the best way to check for crop issues if you're ever in doubt.

They don't have grit, I was under the understanding that when they are getting just starter and nothing else they don't need grit. Is that incorrect?

They only "need" grit if they're eating anything other than starter feed, but the reality is chicks commonly eat bits of bedding even in an indoor brooder, so since there's literally no downside to giving grit I don't see a reason not to provide it.

 

[OL Sarge]

My first set of hatchlings, I didn’t give them any grit and they all survived, even had pine shavings on the floor. My brother asked me if I gave them any girt, my answer was no. He told, I needed to give them some. My second set of hatchlings I gave them chick girt and they all survived.