Chicks that don't/won't open their eyes.

[Tricia5099]

I ordered some chicks and my splash silkie also won't open it's eyes. Yet it managed to find the food and water. At first when I saw it I thought it just fell asleep in my hand but then I watched it and it never opened it's eyes. Genty take a q-tip or toilet paper that's wet with warm water and rub their eyes possibly gently pulling as you wipe if they won't open.once I finally got my chicks eyes open it had like mucus In its eyes. It was very diffucult to get out you have to be careful not to harm the eye. It still likes to keep its eyes shut but opens them frequently it just has adjust. Hope I helped

 

[DjBeaky]

Help! Not even 1 day old chick won't open it's eyes, even if I try and open them! Also it keeps lying on it's back and is very wobbly, I thought this was because of its long legs but its siblings have long legs too and they're fine. The chick doesn't seem keen on eating or drinking and occasionally shivers even though its under a heat lamp. Please help, I don't know I it will make it through the night! x

 

[amy blandford]

I had two chicks that couldn't open their eyes. They wouldn't eat or drink. I thought they were going to die. When I tried to open the eyes they seemed stuck and I didn't want to force them. I used q-tips with warm water about 8 times in a row. Their eyes are now open and they are eating and drinking like crazy. I will watch their eyes to see if it happens again.

 

[Chickin Out]

Hi, Everyone.

I have seen this situation before as well, but it is usually simple to correct. Chicks that don't open their eyes or keep closing them are usually suffering from shipping stress and/or hypothermia. If you have a chick refusing to open it's eyes, do the following steps in order:

1. Warm them. You may think they are warm enough, but they likely are not. Check to see if their feet feel warm. If not, they are much too cold. Warm them with a heating pad on the lowest setting and covered by a towel, with warm towels from the dryer and a brooder lamp, your own bodyheat, etc.t

 

[Chickin Out]

If you can provide some humidity via a humidifier, a pot of water boiling on the stove, running a hot shower, etc., do so. Warm them thoroughly and try to wait an hour before you give any fluids. If they were already very warm then the problem may be dehydration. Proceed to Step 2.

2. Give fluids. Once the chick is thoroughly warm, mix mildly warm water with powdered electrolytes such as Morning Bird's Thrive, Sav-A-Chick, or use unflavored undiluted Pedialyte/pediatric electrolyte solution, but make sure to mix in a bit of honey or molasses. If you don't have honey or molasses, you can use plain table sugar. Then dip the chicks beak in it. Do not allow it to drink very much, just a small sip or two at first.

3. Monitor the chick for vomiting. If it starts to spit up water or saliva, tip the chick forward to clear the airway. Use a cotton swab to clear the mouth if you must. If no vomiting results after 10-15 minutes, administer additional electrolyte solution. Keep on doing that every 20 or 30 minutes for 2 or 3 hours. By now the chick should be recovering and acting hungry. If no more vomiting, proceed to Step 4.

4. Feed the chick. Recovering chicks usually aren't up to eating chick starter at first. Hard boil an egg and finely chop/mash it. Add in some corn meal if you have it. Or you can soften chick starter with water, but in my experience, the egg works much better. Offer it to the chick and it should begin eating well.

I have saved many a chick using these steps. Good luck!!

 

[suburb farm]

I picked up my chicks from the post office yesterday and I have one chick that keeps it's eyes closed almost all the time. It does not eat and it is having trouble standing up. I gave it its own box and gave it a small dish of water with a tiny bit of sugar in it. Could it just be weak from the two days it took for it to be mailed? Is there anything else I can do?

 

[CrazyHatchingLady]

You know I wish I would have found this post a week ago. I had to cull a chicken cause no one in a facebook group I am in could even begin to tell me what may have been wrong with a chick I had. After finding this I had a second one who just hatched with this same issue and even though it was eating and drinking with help it would not open his eyes so I put it in a separate brooder on top of my heating pad (that is well out of heat now) and it went right to sleep. I do not think the others where letting it rest because they seem to have off hours of operation..... Thank God I found it now because this is one chick I DID NOT want to cull he is to precious and expensive. With mine it seems the poor thing wasn't getting sleep so maybe now he will be able to recoup.

 

[Jessica Thompson]

Black tea bags brew it and wipe on there eyes and wipe after tea bag

 

[CrazyHatchingLady]

Black tea bags brew it and wipe on there eyes and wipe after tea bag

For now I ended up putting it in a brooder by its self on my microwavable heating pad. It seems the poor thing was exhausted. I don't think it was ever allowed to sleep because I found something about them being overly tired. My others chicks keep odd hours and I do mean odd. I am begining to believe they never sleep.... So anyway now he is sleeping and getting left alone to do so.... If it still doesn't open them after getting lots of rest then I will try that. I need to leave my facebook group and just come to this site as I am learning to "chicken" seems people over on this site have more compassion and are better knowlaged and don't run to putting it down as a first resourse... I apprecate everyone on this site.

 

[Muhammad Masaud Asdaque]

last three 3 of my chicks that hatched this week is doing the same thingn and no eating and drinking from last 4 days to hatching. I am getting worried...hopefully someone more experienced will post with some advice.