Day Two - sick baby :(

[Leyana]

I just got 8 new day old chicks yesterday and they were all very frisky on day one and this morning. But today I have one that is lethargic and just lies there kind of panting. The temp is just about right at 90-95 degrees and the others seem fine. I move the sick on to a separate box, still under the light b/c the others were stepping on her. She won't sit up and I've tried water with a dropper but no interest in food or water. No pasty butt. Help please! I don't want to lose her.

 

[trilyn]

Is the brooder box large enough that they can get away from the light? This is very important because they need to be able to adjust their own conditions to suit their needs. If they're cold they'll go under the light, but if they're warm-they need to be able to get far away from it. It is possible that yours is suffering from the heat. Remove it from under the light for a while and see what happens. Move the light in your brooder to one side if you can. I always have a larger brooder than is recommended and this is one of the reasons why. Good luck!

 

[Leyana]

Thanks for your reply. The box is pretty large - it's an very large tupperware and they have all been crowding into the side with the light (I have it on the side to give them options on the temp). There's at least 60% of the box that they aren't even moving toward b/c it's the cold side. Any other ideas? I will move the sick on a little bit away from the light.

 

[Leyana]

I loset her. I hope it wasn't something I did. I think I did everything right and read all the info for weeks before they arrived. Any idea how common this is? %-wise? I'm sure weak ones die but it's my first time so I hope it's not a sign of things to come!

 

[mamarose]

I just had the exact same thing happen. I picked up 10 2 day old chicks yesterday, and soon after we got home, one started looking droopy, lethargic, and panting. I separated her into a box of her own, tried to get her to drink sugar water, and she hung on all day today. I was starting to think she might actually pull through, but she got a lot worse this evening, and died just about an hour ago.

And I'm feeling the same way you are -- like we're not off to a very good start. I have heard many many people say it's common, though. It happens. Doesn't make it any easier, and I have been close to tears for the last hour, but hopefully the rest of our chicks will all be fine.

I'm sorry.

 

[fancbrd4me02]

Sometimes you loose chicks like that, without knowing exactly why. While I won't say it's uncommon, it's not the norm either. Sometimes chicks are stressed when you get them. For instance, if your chicks had just come into the TSC, some chicks die after the stress of shipping, maybe they were weak from the ordeal. Or maybe it wasn't getting it's fair share of food or water at the TSC because it was weak from shipping, then you got it, and it was already in bad shape from not getting enough food or water. Sometimes weak chicks can die if they don't get special attention, and at those stores they can't keep track of all those little guys. Sometimes there is some unknown problem that you might never know what happened. I have run into that a timeor two. It's especially hard when it is very unexpected because it comes without warning. There have been times where I have discovered a dead bird and nothing I could think of could explain it. The only thing I can tell you is that chicken keeping is a rewarding activity/hobby/obsession, but things sometimes happen. The important thing is to learn what you can from it, and use that knowledge to benefit the chickens you still have. Good luck.