I have a Buff (roo hen ?? to young to tell) the other chickens pick on it all the time. They have almost put one of its eyes out. It is smaller and lighter than my other Buff. Yesterday I baked it corn bread, kept it in the pen most of the day hoping it would eat a lot. Not much success. Only mildly interested in meal worms ~ will eat sometimes. Does any one have a suggestion for something very nutritious I can feed this litte one. ?
You could give it vitamins and electrolytes to boost vitality so it will eat more. Your local feed supply will have poultry packets that you add to water. Typically used for stressed chicks but good for a boost of energy at any age. The trick is to get them to eat the grower feed that will give them the nutrients they need. You may want to pen this bird by itself until back to good health.
Several things come to mind here: - A smaller chick (we'd call it a runt if it were a dog) may never grow as large as the others. Some chicks are just unthrifty, and some runts actually die. Chickens are odd creatures. If one shows signs of illness or other problems, the others will pick on it to drive it away from the rest of the flock, so as to prevent predators noticing them (an injured bird will attract predators, so the others drive the injured one away.) - What kind of feed are you giving the chick? Some chicks won't grow to their full potential if they aren't getting feed with adequate amounts of protein. Adding in things like cornbread can actually dilute the protein percentage. I would consider perhaps some cooked ground beef, if you want to supplement your commercial feed. Or a lot of people use plain yogurt. Hope it gets better!
