crusty black stuff on baby chicks bottom

Ema

Songster
9 Years
Jun 4, 2010
1,960
16
143
N. Ontario CANADA
Ok, I am super new to the whole raising chickens hobby. before ordering I researched for several months to be sure it was something I really wanted to do. the more I red the more I wanted some. so a month ago I order 20 red sex link chicks. they arrived 2 days ago. today after reading that I would have to check the vent area for pasting up I realized I don't know a whole lot about the underside of a chick. there are 2 holes but I don't know which one is the vent, however on most of them the area needed to be cleaned. I used warm water under theheat lamp with a very soft rinsed out baby wipe, then that is when I discovered they have a 2nd hole a bit further down. on most of the chicks thereis this tiny black tough crusty stuff on it...almost looks like a dried umbelical cord on a week old baby. Can someone help me. I don't know if there is something wrong or if its nothing at all. All the chiks are super active eating and drinking away..and boy can they ever eat!!!! I only got one where both holes was blocked and super messy and a bit red I wetted through andthen gently wiped the poo away but she is still red, but I am guessing its from being blocked!!
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There should only be one hole...The other should be the owie left over from where the umbilicus was attached. Leave the "belly button" alone, but definately wipe the poo off the vents.
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You are absolutely correct about the "2nd" spot being the umbilical cord where it goes into the body. Yes, chickens have umbilical cords, within the egg. (Just not attached to momma - it's attached to the yolk sac!)

Don't mess with the umbilical too much, because - unless something has gone VERY wrong - it will heal up on its own and get covered by feathery down.

The 'vent' is pretty obvious. That's it's little poopy place, where the cloaca and ovipositor ... something like that..... meet to expel waste material (cloaca), and later (for girls) the eggs. "Pasty butt" is the term for fecal matter blocking the vent. Chicks can DIE if that isn't cleared away.
 
you guys are great....ahahahaha I feel dumb saying it was a second hole..but I didn't want to mess with it so I quickly looked. Good thing I have good judgement!!!! thanks again for all your help..I feel better now!
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