Constantly distressed chick?

[Ponyfeather]

i have three chicks about three or four days old and one seems constantly distressed and i am not sure what to do. She isn't really eating or drinking like the other two they aren't picking on her. So i am lost? Any tips to help this little one would be welcome. She is constantly distress peeping only time she has been quiet is if i pick her up and then she tries to sleep in my hand.

 

[junebuggena]

You might try hanging a feather duster in the brooder or putting a stuffed animal in there for them to snuggle under/against, simulating a mother hen. It really helps comfort them.

 

[Ponyfeather]

They have feather duster. They do use it but she follows the others around always trying to cuddle up next to them. I hope she still has some food resurve left since i have only seen her eat once.

 

[azygous]

If your chick is acting distressed, she probably is sick. Monitor her poop first of all. Constipation is a common problem in the first week, and it causes pain and swelling of the vent because the chick is straining to go. I had a chick a few months back who was in great pain when she tried to poop, and it was painful to watch. Mineral oil is a treatment for this.

Pasty butt contributes to constipation, so make sure the vent is clear. Diarrhea is also a common problem and also causes pain and discomfort.

Sometimes a chick can't digest the dry chick starter. You may need to moisten it with warm water. You can also try crumbled tofu or minced boiled egg, the white as well as the yolk. Both have a lot of nutrition.

You need to identify what is distressing your chick. Simply trying to quiet it down with props isn't targeting the problem.

 

[Ponyfeather]

Worked out what was wrong she had got chilled, we got some electrolytes in her and wrapped her up in a heat pad for awhile. Added an extra heat source and pretty soon she was drinking on her own and then eating on her own. She is acting much more like the others just she is peeping happily rather then distressed peeping like she had been.

Thank you for all that info I will watch all of them for all of the above you listed.

 

[azygous]

This could serve as an object lesson to new chick owners. Listen to the different types of peeping. Your chicks will tell you exactly how they're feeling.

Happy and content: light, almost feint, random peeping
Getting ready to go to sleep for the night: a very light trilling, sort of like the sound of tree frogs or ground toads.
Frightened or spooked: rapid, loud chirping, only as long as the episode lasts, then it subsides.
Hungry, cold, in pain: very loud, persistent chirping, almost non-stop.
Weak,sick: light, almost feint chirping, non-stop.

 

[Ridgerunner]

That distress peeping is pretty easy to recognize. It’s obvious something is not right. Glad you figured it out. Getting chilled can stress them.

I had that once with some shipped chicks. I had over 20 and when I put them in the brooder I dipped each one’s beak in the water to teach it to drink. Normally if just one learns to drink the others learn from it. But this one was just standing around peeping three or four days after I received them. That’s about when the food and water from the yolk runs out and they get hungry or thirsty.

I dipped the beak in their water. No electrolytes or anything though those don’t hurt. It just stood there and drank a bunch, obviously it was very thirsty. After that it was fine. It had not learned to drink from when I dipped its beak before or from watching the others.

When those pullets grew up one of them was just dumb. I don’t know how else to say it, she just had a total absence of intelligence. I always wondered it that was the same chick.