Baby chick doing poorly...

[IggiMom]

I had a baby chick hatched in my incubator two days ago. All of my chicks that hatched out were very vigorous except this one. It took forever to hatch.

It has been laying in the incubator on its tummy with its legs stretched out. It was all crusty. Peeping away.

I figured it was a goner and I would just let it die, but after two days of peeping, I thought, gosh, if it wants to live this much perhaps I should give it a chance.

I took it and washed it with Dawn and warm water, and rinsed it and dried it off, and I have been holding it with its legs under it so they will bend correctly, but as soon as I put it back, out straight behind it they go again.

On the one hand I should probably cull it, as perhaps it will always be a 'bad doer' but heck...is there anything else I can do for this chick do you think?

I'll see if I can get it to drink and eat. It certainly can peep!

Catherine

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

Try some Polyvisol baby vitamins without iron. Drible along the beak, so she drinks on her own. I also offer food to them, scooped in my fingernail - for some reason it seems to look like "momma's" beak to them. (I also offer water this way for weeker chicks)

You might need to hobble the legs - you can use a bandaid or vetwrap (which is what I have used). If you do a search for spraddle leg you will get lots of posts. Or you might try setting the little one in a cup to hold the legs forward?

Com' on baby, we are cheering for you.

 

[IggiMom]

Oh, thank you--I have vitamins, so I can do that. (I am pretty much snowed in.)

I'll try the cup and bandaids. I don't have any vetwrap.

My fingernails are pretty short--not sure if that will do the trick, but I can try.

Catherine

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

Sometimes even just tapping the food with my nail helps alot. I am not sure what it is that attracts the chicks to the nail - maybe the way light reflects from it, but they will follow even my short broken nails around (and try to peck at them).

Also maybe a bit of scrambled or boiled egg yolk would be good for the little one.

 

[IggiMom]

Great. I found a post on Spraddle leg and how you can use a bandaid as a prosthesis.

I have been holding the little guy. I do a regular column for a dog mag, and so I have to be sitting here typing anyway.

But I am going to try the bandaid.

Thanks for the encouragement. I let you know how he does.

He seems to have so much gumption that I want to give him a chance.

I wonder if this is hereditary?

Catherine

 

[IggiMom]

Ok, little Peeper now has his bandaid prosthesis on. He did not cooperate.

I have not had much luck getting him to eat as yet.

He is certainly very noisy, which must be a good sign.

Catherine

 

[sumatra]

Hope your baby is doing ok now.
off topic, but I you have a scottish deerhound--how are they to live with? I am seriously considering one, if I can find any.

 

[IggiMom]

They can be hard to find--I probably have the only one in WV!

They are easy to live with. Not barky. They will chase stock, given the opportunity. Well, they are Deerhounds.

They tend to be very quiet and gentle and sweet.

They do have a prey drive, though. Although I particularly picked out Nancy as one who had a low prey drive, and she does. She never bothers anything.

My little chick isn't eating, and now that I decided to try to save it, I wish it WOULD eat. It is just peeping and peeping and peeping. It can't stand up yet. I thought it might be happy in with the other chicks, but they acted like they might pick on it. So I took it out.

It is back on my lap in an upright position.

Catherine

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

Poor baby. Is it taking the vitamins?

 

[Happy Chooks]

Have you tried hard boiled eggs chopped up? Or even scrambled chopped up?

This link shows the chair that was mentioned.
http://sites.google.com/a/larsencreek.com/chicken-orthopedics/leg-braces

come on little one.