baby chick cant walk

[willowtreecreek]

I have a 5 day old chick(buff orpinton) that cant seem to walk. He can stand but when he walks he falls over. His wings seem less developed than the others as well. He keeps getting stepped on by the others. Is there anything I can do?

also if I keep him seperate for a few days while he heals will they accept him back?

 

[Pathfinders]

Sadly, sometimes some chicks just fail to thrive. You can try keeping him by himself and feeding him by hand, he may or may not get better. It's hard though, as we tend to fall in love with the little runts that we try to save, and it makes it harder when/if they die later.

I am sorry you are dealing with this...

 

[willowtreecreek]

should i force feed him? What to i do?

 

[Pathfinders]

Personally, I don't believe in "force feeding" chicks like this. What you can do is mix up a slurry of molasses and water and dip his beak into it, encouraging him to drink. But force feeding is likely to put feed into his lungs, which is never a good thing.

 

[willowtreecreek]

He has died but thank you for your help.

 

[Darlasmum]

I'm sorry to hear you lost your lil guy.

 

[Pathfinders]

I'm sorry to hear it didn't make it.

 

[jjparke]

So sorry for your loss. Nobody warns us of the "dark" side of home hatching. I've processed a lot of full grown chickens for my family to eat but it's a new kind of nightmare when you have to dispense of a lame 5 day old chic.

 

[Kacey's Krazee's]

Sorry for your loss, but with the loss, comes learning. Thank you for sharing your lessons.

 

[caralouise1974]

Quote:
I'm so sorry you had to go through this. It's horrible when one of your flock has to be helped along to a better place.

Personally, I find it much harder when one of my big girls is ill and I have to accept they might die. I suppose it's because I've grown to love them, whereas the tiny day-old chicks haven't yet had time to find their place in my heart. It's still terrible, but somehow I find it a little easier to deal with than losing one of the grown ladies. Nevertheless, any loss is awful to have to face.

Sending love and good wishes your way