Crazy newbie questions- save me!

[minaayindra]

My hatchery chicks are now 11 days old. As much research as I've done, I have new questions!

First, one of my 17 chicks is constipated. He eats and drinks the exact same as everyone else- I had them all on probiotics for 3 days, as recommended. They won't drink any water with vinegar added, no matter how small an amount, and that causes dehydration, so I have changed back to fresh water. I really don't know what to do to keep him comfortable. I don't want to try to give every chick something for his constipation but I don't know if removing the feces manually when he gets stuck mid-way is effective or good for him (I don't really know the sex of this little guy). He seems perfectly healthy in every way, just this.

Second, my chicks all scratch, pull at their feathers, etc. This is probably normal because they don't do it constantly but I was a little concerned that maybe they have mites or something else? Can anyone give me their best guess?

Third, what is the standard growth rate on chicks? At 11 days, they have already doubled in size and many are trying to fly out of the brooder- I didn't see anything indicating they would grow this quickly. I'm just trying to be sure this is "normal" since I counted on keeping them in the brooder for at least 4 weeks and they are already starting to get more physically "crowded." Their ability to come to the top of the walls, already, is a concern because they are hitting their heads on the hardware cloth I put over the top of the brooder! Do I have Godzilla chicks or hyperachievers?

I have gotten great information on so many things on boards and this one seems particularly effective. Please let me know what you think. Thank you.

 

[chrissynemetz]

When you say constipated, do they have poo stuck on their back ends? If they do, that's pasty butt, it can be caused by too much heat. Wash it off with warm water and mild soap. What is the temp in the brooder? They need a cool area to get away from the heat if they get too hot. Also, what kind of feed are you giving them? If you could post pictures of your brooder and possibly the chicks it might help

 

[chrissynemetz]

And yes they grow amazingly fast! Some breeds faster than others, but they all grow quickly

 

[Taj_MaChicken]

If your chick doesn't have pasty butt, are they straining to poo? Like it sounds like they're screaming in pain and their poop won't come out completely?

 

[minaayindra]

If your chick doesn't have pasty butt, are they straining to poo? Like it sounds like they're screaming in pain and their poop won't come out completely?

Exactly! Just this one chick, all the rest have zero issues. Figures it would be my favorite little guy I'm so attached to. I have been squeezing his vent to push it out since it is literally stuck and he always cheeps his distress call when it is happening, plus tries to peck it out himself. Poor guy-

 

[minaayindra]

When you say constipated, do they have poo stuck on their back ends? If they do, that's pasty butt, it can be caused by too much heat. Wash it off with warm water and mild soap. What is the temp in the brooder? They need a cool area to get away from the heat if they get too hot. Also, what kind of feed are you giving them? If you could post pictures of your brooder and possibly the chicks it might help

No, I had a chick with pasty butt and a couple of others in their first few days that were developing it. This is strictly feces stuck in the rectum, partially out of the vent and gets stuck. The brooder is warm on one side and cool on the other, they tend to stick to the periphery of the heat lamp when sleeping, occasionally under it, and their food is on the opposite side, where they hang out to eat at will. I haven't noticed them hugging one side or the other but they do like to sleep right by the heated area. They are all on medicated chick starter feed. Would grit help? I'm not even sure how it works, other than knowing it helps them digest what they eat. How's that for stupid? I'm having a little trouble with getting pictures into this new computer but the brooder is a standard set-up, infrared heat lamp with corrugated sides fastened with cable ties. I layer it with pine chips and they have multiple water sources.

 

[Taj_MaChicken]

Exactly! Just this one chick, all the rest have zero issues. Figures it would be my favorite little guy I'm so attached to. I have been squeezing his vent to push it out since it is literally stuck and he always cheeps his distress call when it is happening, plus tries to peck it out himself. Poor guy-

We had one just like that... took me the longest time to figure out what was going on. For a few weeks, she was keeping us up all night. We would help her poop by massaging her by her vent, soaking her butt in warm water, lots of vaseline around the vent, even separated her from the rest because she was eating the pine shavings and put her in her own brooder with newspaper, wet her food, and kept tabs on her water intake. I would feed her some mashed up banana, give her a little prune juice with a dropper, and then give her a few drops of like canola oil to help lubes up her insides so hopefully everything would slide out easier.

She grew out of it eventually. But it did stunt her growth because she hardly ate for 2 or 3 weeks. At one point I didn't think she would make it through the night.

Best of luck, and hopefully your little one gets better. Ours is now rotten from all the time she spent with us!

 

[chrissynemetz]

I would definitely offer them grit, he could be eating tiny bits of the bedding and that could cause him to be constipated.

 

[minaayindra]

We had one just like that... took me the longest time to figure out what was going on. For a few weeks, she was keeping us up all night. We would help her poop by massaging her by her vent, soaking her butt in warm water, lots of vaseline around the vent, even separated her from the rest because she was eating the pine shavings and put her in her own brooder with newspaper, wet her food, and kept tabs on her water intake. I would feed her some mashed up banana, give her a little prune juice with a dropper, and then give her a few drops of like canola oil to help lubes up her insides so hopefully everything would slide out easier.

She grew out of it eventually. But it did stunt her growth because she hardly ate for 2 or 3 weeks. At one point I didn't think she would make it through the night.

Best of luck, and hopefully your little one gets better. Ours is now rotten from all the time she spent with us!

He eats like a hog and is definitely not stunted at this time... he is also already rotten. lol That's his little head on the furthest left side of my profile pic and his name is Ned. Since he is one of my most social chicks, I was hoping not to separate him from the others, even if it's only with a wire partition. I can certainly put vaseline on his rear, and I'm happy to give him banana. Would it be okay to just give them all banana? They're at this weird stage where they don't seem to be too inclined towards any treats of fruit so I don't know if they would eat it or not. With that, would he still need prune juice and canola oil by dropper? I've only lost the one chick at about 5 days old, due to a yolk sac infection, but it was horrible giving her a dropper because she fought it and sometimes she would gag like she'd aspirated it. I think that's my own PTSD from the event, probably not as stressful for chicks at all.

 

[minaayindra]

I would definitely offer them grit, he could be eating tiny bits of the bedding and that could cause him to be constipated.

Great! The bag said start at 2 weeks and he is 3 days shy of that. I guess that won't hurt- I'm such a literalist when it comes to directions for their care, it would never have occured to me to break the "rules" on the bag! lol