chicks with pasty butt

[echosmaster]

I received a batch of chicks this week and am having trouble with pasty butt. I've read on this site that it is caused by constipation and that adding a bit of molasass to thier water will help. I have a lot of field grade molasass. Will this be ok to use or should I go to the store and get the stuff for people?

 

[Fred's Hens]

Frankly, adding anything to the water is a crap shoot. Sometimes the extra added sugars are exacerbating the problem. It's usually caused by shipping stress and then by high heat and slight de-hydration. If anything, a bit of raw apple cider in the water, but just for a day or two.
Hold their butts under a stream of tepid water to soften the crud, gently crush the poop and crumble it away. I don't like to yank or pull.

My guess it that after a day or two, it passes away naturally and you'd be all set. Clean water and starter. That's it.

 

[rhs7111]

You do need human-grade (food grade) molasses....field-grade molasses has impurities in it that can harm or kill chicks. The ratio is one large drop of molasses mixed into a tablespoon of WARM water, so that the water color is a medium caramel. Have the chick take at least 6-10 sips of this water daily, and usually doing so for 3-4 days does the trick. If you need to hold the chick and dip the beak into the molasses water, make sure not to submerge the nostrils to avoid aspiration of the water. Molasses water has laxative properties in chickens. Also, make sure the regular drinking water is tepid, not cool, as cold water can exacerbate constipation in chicks. (Do this in addition to removing the dried poops from the butt)

 

[TheSitcomGirls]

I had one chick this year who had pasty butt. (14 were fine). I washed her butt 3 times a day with warm running water. Then dried with a paper towel. It took three weeks for it to go away...but now she is fine!

 

[Mrs.brown]

I had a chick with a pasty butt a few days ago. I washed it and put some olive oil on it and now its pooping on me when I hold him.