Baby chick that wont grow!

[bayside brewing]

We've got the same thing going on, 7 chicks - 1 is a runt. These are the first chicks we've ever had and about a week and a half in, I could tell something was different and she was small etc. Now they are three weeks old and the 6 others are easily 3 times as big as the little one. She seems to eat and drink ok and doesn't seem to get picked on, as someone else said she actually seems to get protected or cuddled a little by the others. She's supposed to be a silver laced wyandotte and looks almost exactly like felidaets photos. She sleeps a little more than the others and seeks the warmer spots than the others do to. I guess it's just wait and see what happens... ours came from MPC and were here overnight, so no long trip or anything for them.

 

[critters]

wow...that really is a big difference between the two chicks but they are both still cuties! Good luck!

I have 31 Cochins right now...all different colors at just 4 weeks...I have a few smaller ones in them so guess
I'll keep an eye on their sizes and feathering...

 

[xxxgeorgiexxx]

i had a rhode island red like that it eventually grew a few feathers on it's wings. it eat and drank loads but unfortuantly it died the night i put it into the chick coop up the field it was about 8 weeks old. wish the best for your chick!!!

 

[Laura08]

I have a RIR who wouldn't grow. She ate and drank fine and none of the other birds picked on her. Now she is finally growing, slowly but surely, and is almost fully feathered with the exception of a few spots on her head. I was beginning to think that maybe she was a bantam... but how would I be able to tell if she was a bantam or just a chicken whose growth was stunted? Is there such a thing as a RIR bantam? Either way she is doing fine now, and is affectionately named Rosie

 

[tracy1617]

I also have a Silver Laced Wyandotte that doesn't seem to want to grow. She eats, drinks and sleeps just like the rest. She is three weeks old and looks like a 7 day old chick. She has little feathers that were starting to pop out,but then stopped. She loves us and loves attention. Seems to be healthy other than not growing like her sisters. Any suggestions on what I could feed her to help her grow? THanks!

 

[hannahchicken]

I have the same issue. i have one golden laced wyandotte that looks as if she hasn't grown at al in the past 2 weeks. We've named her lentil and she's quickly become a favorite.
What does it mean it may be a rooster? Do roosters develop slower than hens?

 

[ShearerChicks]

I've got some guinea keets being raised with a few white leghorns. All are the same age, 4wks. One of my keets had a problem with pasty butt, which is mostly under control, but the keet is now half the size of all the others. It eats and drinks just fine. It's also getting all of it's feathers. Poor baby looks weighed down by the feathers on it's wings. Is there a reason for this? I know it's unusual for a guinea, but it actually will sit in my hand, and quiets down when I talk to it. I really don't want to lose my little Doodles.

 

[Percy1023]

It looks like there is no definite answer to the chick that wont grow. So, do we stay with it until natural death? Can expert advice be provided regarding this?

 

[Equus17]

I have heard/read that extra protein makes chicks grow faster (i.e.- necessary when growing broilers), so I was wondering if extra protein would help these runty chicks? It would make sense at least that it could help their feathering, since I read that chicks without enough protein in their diet won't feather out correctly, and may even turn cannibalistic to get the protein they need.

Maybe these runts have a digestive problem (enzyme deficiency, need a probiotic, etc) whereas they are not properly digesting/absorbing the protein, so that on the same high quality diet as their coop mates, they still are not getting as much nutrition?

I am experiencing this problem as well. I have seven black Australorp chicks, all hatched March 30th. The two roos (all were supposed to be hens) were noticeably smaller after about a week, and the one feathered out more slowly but is still pretty much "clothed" now. But the little runt is still a little fuzz butt. Has some wing feathers but barely anything else. All the others like to show off and fly and he can't even leave the ground, poor kiddo! He is very active and bright and alert, no signs of illness otherwise. I was wondering if maybe it just took him a little longer to get out of the egg as a hatchling? I keep them inside at night still because of him! The others had more feathers at 2 weeks than he does now at over 6 weeks.

Sorry to hear that I am not alone on this problem, but it is good to know that there is not necessarily something that I did or messed up to cause this.

I am thinking I might try to feed him "game bird starter", which usually has higher protein of 24 to 28%. Thoughts? :-/

 

[Equus17]

My Australorp cockerel is now ~4 1/2 months old, and still has less feathers than most chicks would at 2 weeks. Kind of.

His neck finally feathered in, a couple days after I started supplementing with high protein feeds. But he *still* does not have any tail feathers at all-- nothing more than fluffy down. His wings and hackle and saddle feathers are all a gorgeous purple-green sheen. I call him my naked rooster.... I kind of assumed he would eventually "catch up", but at this point I just don't know. In all other aspects he is normal-- runs and plays, challenges the other birds (he may even be top dog), eats better than any of them, has a good weight. He is just a fluff-butt.