Does baby need a buddy?

[sgraybeal]

Back in Dec. I had a hen abandon her nest the day before chicks should have hatched. I brought the eggs in & was successfully able to hatch 2 of the 5 although it took a couple extra days. I live in Southwest VA so the temps do drop into the teens even during the day in winter. Long story short, I had to cull one of the two chicks today. They would have been 7 weeks old this weekend. I've read that chickens are social so I'm concerned about the one chick I still have. I have 6 hens & 1 rooster but this chick is too young to go out when the temp doesn't even make it above freezing. A new baby would be too small for this one. I could separate them in the dog crate with the divider like I did with the one I had to cull but wouldn't the 95 degrees needed for a newborn be too hot for a 7 week old chick? I'm new to raising chickens & I could really use some advice! Thanks!

 

[chickens really]

Back in Dec. I had a hen abandon her nest the day before chicks should have hatched. I brought the eggs in & was successfully able to hatch 2 of the 5 although it took a couple extra days. I live in Southwest VA so the temps do drop into the teens even during the day in winter. Long story short, I had to cull one of the two chicks today. They would have been 7 weeks old this weekend. I've read that chickens are social so I'm concerned about the one chick I still have. I have 6 hens & 1 rooster but this chick is too young to go out when the temp doesn't even make it above freezing. A new baby would be too small for this one. I could separate them in the dog crate with the divider like I did with the one I had to cull but wouldn't the 95 degrees needed for a newborn be too hot for a 7 week old chick? I'm new to raising chickens & I could really use some advice! Thanks!

What was wrong with the one you had to cull?

 

[sgraybeal]

What was wrong with the one you had to cull?

I'm not 100 percent positive but I think it was a vitamin deficiency. It was a half black silkie chick. About 3 weeks ago it stopped walking & it's little toes curled up. I switched to organic feed & put some Vit B in it's feed for a couple days. Legs didn't get better but it was improving. While I was gone over the weekend it started doing somersaults. I figured wry neck & added Vit E. I was having to hand feed & water it the past few days. This morning it was just lying on its side with eyes closed constantly chirping. It wouldn't drink any water so I figured at this point it was in distress. All this happened over the course of 3 weeks. As long as it ate & drank & didn't seem to be in pain I held out hope. But this morning I knew. Other chick is completely fine. Had splay leg at birth but I fixed it & we've had no problems since.

 

[rosemarythyme]

It'd be nice if you could find a chick or two close to the same age, but that's probably very difficult right now. Tougher to integrate just one chick but since it's 7 weeks along I think I'd be aiming more towards integration in the near future, rather than bring in a newly hatched chick which mostly likely would have to be separated from the older one anyhow.

 

[sgraybeal]

It'd be nice if you could find a chick or two close to the same age, but that's probably very difficult right now. Tougher to integrate just one chick but since it's 7 weeks along I think I'd be aiming more towards integration in the near future, rather than bring in a newly hatched chick which mostly likely would have to be separated from the older one anyhow.

With the weather in Southwest VA I'm looking at this chick being in the house for 2-3 more months, with long periods of time outside during the day towards the end of that timeframe. I'm afraid it is going to become too attached to me & have a much harder time integrating. I'm looking at my options & trying to decide what to do. Thanks for the advice!

 

[rosemarythyme]

For the time being a mirror can at least be a substitute "friend."

When you have better days it would be a good idea for it to start spending some time outside to meet the flock and just learn chicken things. That'll also help start acclimating it to the temperatures and maybe you'll be able to move it out sooner rather than later (I assume it's also half silkie?) if it seems to be doing well outdoors.

 

[sgraybeal]

For the time being a mirror can at least be a substitute "friend."

When you have better days it would be a good idea for it to start spending some time outside to meet the flock and just learn chicken things. That'll also help start acclimating it to the temperatures and maybe you'll be able to move it out sooner rather than later (I assume it's also half silkie?) if it seems to be doing well outdoors.

For the time being a mirror can at least be a substitute "friend."

When you have better days it would be a good idea for it to start spending some time outside to meet the flock and just learn chicken things. That'll also help start acclimating it to the temperatures and maybe you'll be able to move it out sooner rather than later (I assume it's also half silkie?) if it seems to be doing well outdoors.

A mirror is a great idea! No, it is a full size "mutt." I got eggs from a friend when my hen became broody as I did not yet have a rooster. We wanted to see what would happen with her silkie eggs from a barnyard mix rooster. When temps allow I will put it outside in a small pen so the other chickens can start making friends. Thank you!

 

[cmom]

Maybe this will help and maybe a swap close to you where you could get your chick a couple of friends. Good luck and have fun...
https://www.poultryshowcentral.com/Virginia_Swap.html