Chick mama for just 24 hours...something already wrong :(

[Stormimay]

Yesterday I went to a local farm (the lady I get my eating eggs from, actually) and bought eight 3-4 week old ameraucana chicks. They all looked healthy and bright eyed. I brought them home and let them run around in a small "play yard" outside and let them meet my nine 2 week old keets, who are going to be their brood mates for the next few weeks. They got along famously, and when I went to bed last night they all, keets and chicks, seemed happy, active, and healthy. This morning one chick seemed a little more tired than others, but perked up whenever I touched it or moved around. Now, though, the poor thing is so tired she can barely lift her head or right herself when she tilts over while sleeping. I immediately got some corid and dosed the water and feed, even though her poop looks solid and non-bloody. I also have some poultry electrolytes and pro-biotics, but haven't given them because I was afraid it would not do well with the medicine. I don't know what to do...I really don't want to lose this one, not less than two days after getting her. I hate the idea that I might have bought a healthy chicken and then accidentally killed it. Please, any advice?

 

[iwiw60]

Well, hindsight is always 20/20, but you probably should have 'quarantined' the new chicks for a period of time maybe? Hope all turns out well for your little fuzzy-butt!

 

[sayga]

Make sure you have multiple areas for food and water so a more aggressive bird doesn't guard the food. Also, did you show them where the water is? I don't know if you have to do it for bigger chicks, but I always do anyway. I dip their beak in the water when they are in a new place or have a watering area that is unfamiliar to them. That'd be my first guess; just that the little gal doesn't have access to food or water because she doesn't know where it is or someone is guarding it.

 

[Michael Apple]

Separate chicks from keets in a brooder and keep the temp around 80-85 degrees. You're dosing Corid in water. How much, and how long do you plan on doing that? Do you have the chicks on medicated feed? Up to 9 months of age is a critical time for their immunity to coccidiosis. Never mix chickens in a brooder with other birds, or put new birds with a flock unless they have been quarantined for at least a month to ensure they show no symptoms of illness.

 

[Stormimay]

Hm. I haven't observed any guarding, but I haven't really been checking to see if certain chicks aren't making it to the food and water. I also didn't show the chicks where the food and water was, but they didn't seem to have any trouble finding it. I did take the sick chick out for a while into her own little box with water and food...she'll drink if I dip her beak in the water, but won't eat and will only drink once at a time. I didn't think to quarantine them because for some reason I was thinking "the first chicks" instead of realizing keets and chicks can probably catch the same things. All the others seem healthy so far. My local farmer friends have pretty much just said, "So sorry. Such is farming." So well, I guess I'll just see. Thanks.

Oh! A question: I am picking up two more chicks Sunday. They are from the same hatch as these last 8 I got, they were all together till yesterday. Should I quarantine them, or will it not matter since they are all from the same place and have only been separate for 3 days?

 

[cafarmgirl]

Take the chick that is sick and give it the medicated water with an eye dropper every hour or so, it is unlikely to drink enough on it's own since it's feeling crummy. They usually perk up and started eating and drinking well on their own in a day or so if it's coccidiosis.