chick not growing???

[Sam40]

Hi, I Hatched 3 chicks in my incubater for the first time, they are now 5 weeks old, 2 are fine but 1 hasn't grown it is almost the same size as when it was born and still fluffy, any advise please, will it be ok?
cheers Sam

 

[JOSEYWALES]

That is wierd. If you have not already seperate it out from the other two and see if in a week it has grown any. I am surprised it has lived this long without getting any bigger. Any that I have had that were not growing did not last more then two weeks. Good luck.

 

[Sam40]

They are all still in together, it seems healthy, eating and drinking. It is now keeping warm under the other chicks, which don,t seem to mind.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I had two chicks that fell behind in growth. I lost one to coccidiosis and the other is now growing and catching up. I would keep them all together if they are getting along. Do you have any symptoms of illness, i.e.: lethargy, bloody stools?

Are they all warm enough? Or is it just the small one that is cold? Cold and feathers fluffed up sounds like coccidiosis. But he or she would definitely seem sick, not just scrawny. Does he just sit there all day by himself, and fall asleep?

 

[Sam40]

Hi Thanks for the replies and advise, the little one seems perfectly fine and healthy, they are still in brooder, the light is on at night and off during day, so the little chick lays under other 2 for warmth, but id walking about and eating ok.. Fingers crossed it will be ok.

 

[Dora'smom]

Try to give it a little Poly-vi-sol infant vitamin drops without iron. Dribble a drop or two along his beak and let him take them in slowly so he won't aspirate. That may give him the little boost he needs. Otherwise, just keep an eye on him, and make sure that he really is eating and drinking enough. Sometimes as other chicks get bigger, they will push the little guys out of the way at either the food or water, or both. I don't know that they mean to, they just don't pay any mind.

 

[pgpoultry]

Could you provide a pic?

In some breeds the roosters feather out much later than the pullets.

I have 7 week old Brahma chicks where one little male is still largely baby fluff (But could turn out to be huge if previous experience is anything to go by)

Sandie

 

[lsv313]

I had a chick like this! It stayed so tiny and fluffy several weeks later than the other chicks who were born at the same time. In fact, the other chicks about doubled its size. But it always acted very healthy, in fact it had more spunk than the rest of them! Now it is about 4 months old, and seems to be doing well. It is even starting to catch up in growth, but is still on the small side. It also does have swollen looking feet. Otherwise, seems healthy in every respect.

 

[HeritageHens]

Lsv, I'm so glad to hear that! My Abby is a Speckled Sussex. She was hatched on August 11th and is about 1/4th the size of the rest. The first picture (if I'm doing this right) is Abby last week (9/11).

Here is a picture of her with my Easter Egger, Ziva. I purchased Ziva on August 7th and they said she was "about 2 weeks old." In this photo, Ziva would be about 7 weeks old (I think she was closer to 6 weeks old max). Abby is 4.5 weeks old.

And here is Abby with my Dark Brahma, Stevie. Stevie is exactly the same age as Abby.

Abby was the only one of the nine who had pasty butt as a baby. She acts like a normal chick for her age, scratching in the litter and flying for short distances. She eats and drinks a lot and won't let the bigger guys intimidate her at the food and treat bowls. She's also the one who normally finds the worms in the soil I bring in to them every other day. I have noticed in the last few days that she seems to be putting on weight. She's almost fully feathered now too but does seem to get chilled more than the others so I have a bulb in the enclosed outdoor coop (they outgrew the indoor brooder). I'm still adding the Rooster Booster vitamins and electrolytes to their water to give her an extra boost.