Chick Can't Poop!

[BrattishTaz]

Can you hear any noises coming from the chick when is breathes? Aside from gasping, do you hear a rattle or anything? Is there a lot of pop in the brooder? Do you smell ammonia in there?


The more I read, the more I see heat as a possible culprit.

 

[koakritters]

no, no and no. what should i do if it is heat then? i would assume heat problems = dehydration, which is why she could have gotten this bad this fast? i only have 2, 75 watt bulbs in there, at 2 different heights so they can decide where they want to be, maybe she just didn't move out from under it?

she;s not doing the full gasping thing anymore, now it's a smaller movement at a normal rate, she could be sleeping... idk if this is good or bad now...

 

[krissteff]

I don't think I'll be able to sleep until that chicky poops. Seriously. I keep refreshing my browser to see if it's happened yet.

I'm sorry about the others, too

Thankfully, there are so many helpful people on this board who can offer sound advice.

 

[koakritters]

i know, i love this place!

i've gotten a bit of poop outta him, but he's actually standing fairly normally right now, and i really don't want to interrupt his practicing standing right to check, once he's laying down again i'll grab him and see what's going on.

 

[BrattishTaz]

Quote:
You may just want to keep one bulb in there. You want the warmest area to be no higher than 90 degrees....85 would be good for chicks this age. You want them to be able to get away from the heat. Heat will cause dehydration and could cause other issues too.

You can always put the other light back if they start acting too cold.

 

[BrattishTaz]

Quote:
I wish some of them would pop in here and help out.

I'm feeling a bit useless here.

 

[ChickyLove]

This may sound insane and I don't know if it will work or not, but here goes:

You know how when a human infant is constipated, you can gently massage the lower abdomen from top to bottom to get things moving? Maybe try that. Do you have any prune juice?

 

[koakritters]

well, she's out on my desk, and now she's breathing normally (or at least it looks normal, no more gasping...) and she looks as though she could just be sleeping...

 

[BrattishTaz]

Quote:
You may just want to keep one bulb in there. You want the warmest area to be no higher than 90 degrees....85 would be good for chicks this age. You want them to be able to get away from the heat. Heat will cause dehydration and could cause other issues too.

You can always put the other light back if they start acting too cold.

Chicks do get sick fast but they can also recover just as quickly. I'm glad the hear she stopped gasping. I think that reinforces the "too hot" theory. You took her out to get pics...she cooled down. I hope adjusting the heat solves the problem.

 

[krissteff]

Quote:
I wish some of them would pop in here and help out.

I'm feeling a bit useless here.

I think you're great!! I hope you're around when I've got problems like this.

Just a quick edit: I don't ever want problems like this, but should I have them....