I have to share a bit of a cautionary tale here. About a month ago I had a persistently broody hen. She had been stealing eggs from other nest so they weren't all started together, I moved about 40 chicks ranging in ages from about 10 days to 45 days into a smaller walled in area in the same coop with about 4' walls. By next morning she had gotten into that space to mother them. Within a couple days, 5 more hens joined the fray. It was a mess. 6 broody hens trying mother 40 chicks. They were just in a big pile in the corner at night. A few days later I sold 13 of the chicks which had a couple of the hens hating me.
I had a lone 10 day old chick still under a brooder in the house when another hatched. (I moved the eggs the broody had abandoned into the incubator) It was too cold at the time to move these chicks out since it got down into the low 20s F at night. Finally on Saturday, we got to the point where it wasn't going to get below freezing for the next week so I decided to move the 10 and 20 day old chicks out to the coop so they could be raised by hens and I wouldn't have any house chickens.
I did so at lock up time and the chicks ran into the pile of birds and I figured they'd be fine. There's always chick feed and a water fount available to those birds
Sunday morning my wife wanted me to go do some things with her so because of her impatience I opened all the coops and left.
It was in the 40s all day. Apparently all the hens came out with the older chicks and none stayed behind to care for the smallest.
I checked on them when I got home. The 20 day old was alone in the coop. I went into the chick quarters to get it and saw the 10 day old limp and buried in the bedding. I assumed it died recently since just it's legs were stiff but the body was cold and limp as a wet noodle, eyes closed and no sign of life.
Rather than discard the dead chick, I decided to bring it into the house with the older chick. I put the older one under the heat plate to warm it up. I got out a hair dryer and started to heat up the lifeless chick. After about 30 seconds, it moved its head a bit and bent its legs. I wasn't sure if it was truly a sign of life or just posthumous nerve reactions. I put it in with the other chick and left the hair dryer on low blowing right on the chick. About 20 minutes later, it was showing more signs of life. I took a syringe of a 50:50 mixture of water and Nutri-Drench and got a little into its mouth. I put it back under the hair dryer. About an hour later it was moving but couldn't stand. I gave it more of the ND fluid and about 2 hours later it could walk a bit.
By late last night and today it is running around with the other chick like it never had a problem.
This isn't the first time I've revived frozen chicks with a hair dryer.
I had a lone 10 day old chick still under a brooder in the house when another hatched. (I moved the eggs the broody had abandoned into the incubator) It was too cold at the time to move these chicks out since it got down into the low 20s F at night. Finally on Saturday, we got to the point where it wasn't going to get below freezing for the next week so I decided to move the 10 and 20 day old chicks out to the coop so they could be raised by hens and I wouldn't have any house chickens.
I did so at lock up time and the chicks ran into the pile of birds and I figured they'd be fine. There's always chick feed and a water fount available to those birds
Sunday morning my wife wanted me to go do some things with her so because of her impatience I opened all the coops and left.
It was in the 40s all day. Apparently all the hens came out with the older chicks and none stayed behind to care for the smallest.
I checked on them when I got home. The 20 day old was alone in the coop. I went into the chick quarters to get it and saw the 10 day old limp and buried in the bedding. I assumed it died recently since just it's legs were stiff but the body was cold and limp as a wet noodle, eyes closed and no sign of life.
Rather than discard the dead chick, I decided to bring it into the house with the older chick. I put the older one under the heat plate to warm it up. I got out a hair dryer and started to heat up the lifeless chick. After about 30 seconds, it moved its head a bit and bent its legs. I wasn't sure if it was truly a sign of life or just posthumous nerve reactions. I put it in with the other chick and left the hair dryer on low blowing right on the chick. About 20 minutes later, it was showing more signs of life. I took a syringe of a 50:50 mixture of water and Nutri-Drench and got a little into its mouth. I put it back under the hair dryer. About an hour later it was moving but couldn't stand. I gave it more of the ND fluid and about 2 hours later it could walk a bit.
By late last night and today it is running around with the other chick like it never had a problem.
This isn't the first time I've revived frozen chicks with a hair dryer.
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. I chase them out the yard screaming like a lunatic. Guess I need to look at some live traps, or death traps!! 
ugh
