Chick in shock?

[Bellsa08]

Hello! I have a broody with 5 day old chicks. One got caught on a bit of fencing and injured the skin on its neck, looks like mostly an abrasion but it’s hard to see. It’s not visibly bleeding, but it’s not eating/drinking with the others now. It’s mostly dozing off, but still following mama hen around and keeping with the flock. Pretty sure the chick is in shock. Is there anything I can do to help it? How long might this chick be in shock? TIA!!

 

[make way for ducklings]

I agree, it is most likely in shock since the fencing incident and the abrasion were probably quite traumatic for it. I would check it over and make sure there are no other injuries - if there are more abrasions/cuts/etc. just make sure they are clean and you can apply some antibiotic cream (without analgesic!) to the area. Other than that, continue to monitor the chick and make sure it is eating/drinking/pooping/etc. - if not immediately, then at least in the next day. It might be in shock for just a few hours to days depending on how injured and traumatized it was (although chicks bounce back pretty quickly in general). Some of my adult hens have been in a shock state for anywhere from a day to a week following hawk attacks - the important thing is to make sure they're hydrated and staying healthy throughout. Hope this helps!

 

[Bellsa08]

I agree, it is most likely in shock since the fencing incident and the abrasion were probably quite traumatic for it. I would check it over and make sure there are no other injuries - if there are more abrasions/cuts/etc. just make sure they are clean and you can apply some antibiotic cream (without analgesic!) to the area. Other than that, continue to monitor the chick and make sure it is eating/drinking/pooping/etc. - if not immediately, then at least in the next day. It might be in shock for just a few hours to days depending on how injured and traumatized it was (although chicks bounce back pretty quickly in general). Some of my adult hens have been in a shock state for anywhere from a day to a week following hawk attacks - the important thing is to make sure they're hydrated and staying healthy throughout. Hope this helps!

I haven’t seen it eat or drink since the incident that was about an hour ago. How long Do you think I should wait before I intervene? And if i separated the chick for a day or two would mama take it back? Thanks for responding so quickly!

 

[make way for ducklings]

Since the chick is still following mama hen around, I would wait to intervene until the chick acts listless, lethargic, and/or stops following the brood around. It'll probably bounce back to normal within a few hours or by tomorrow, hopefully. I haven't raised a brood with a mama hen, so I'm not sure how the mama would react to the chick after being separated for a little while (can someone else speak to that?). Hope your chick feels better soon!

 

[Bellsa08]

Since the chick is still following mama hen around, I would wait to intervene until the chick acts listless, lethargic, and/or stops following the brood around. It'll probably bounce back to normal within a few hours or by tomorrow, hopefully. I haven't raised a brood with a mama hen, so I'm not sure how the mama would react to the chick after being separated for a little while (can someone else speak to that?). Hope your chick feels better soon!

Chick is eating and drinking some now. I got a better look at the wound and it is open, put some antibiotic ointment on it. Mama hen saw the wound and was interested and I stopped her from pecking at it =\. Fingers crossed. The chick seems to be perking up more. Broody will take them in to bed down soon so hopefully the chick gets a good night to regroup. Thankfully I have the day off tomorrow so I’ll be able to keep an eye on them all day.