Exchequer Leghorn chick HALF the size of my other 6 chicks?! Due to size difference or crossbeak?

[KatieAnnFrench]

Hi Everyone,

I’m new to posting but have been reading your threads for weeks, preparing for my first flock of 8 chicks. One died in the mail, which was heartbreaking, and I’m not sure if I’m being hyper sensitive about the others out of fear of losing another. PLEASE- any advice you have would be greatly appreciated.

I’m nervous that something is wrong with my leghorn, because she is half the size of the other chicks. She hasn’t seem to grow at all in the 3 days I’ve had her, and she has just been standing and falling asleep all day, while the others run around her. My flock is: 2 orpingtons, 1 australop, 2 easter wggers, 1 golden laced wyandotte, and my exchequer leghorn. The leghorn was added last minute to my order and the fully grown weight appears to be only 3-5 lbs., while the others should all be 5-8 lbs. The leghorn was happy/healthy on days 1-3, but it is day 4 and she has just been standing alone the entire day. I’ve been checking all chicks for pasting twice a day, and she hasn’t had it (yet). Until today, I didn’t notice any issues with her eating, drinking or popping. She is not laying down, just falling asleep while standing. When she walks, she moves slowly and not farther than a few steps. I think she just looks exhausted. I tried putting her in a separate box with sugar water and chick feed, but she’s so freaked out about being in there that she ignores the food and tries jumping out.

I noticed that her beak is a tiny bit crossed, and I’m wondering if this is the start of cross-beak, and if that would affect her eating this early on. It’s only crossed a little tiny bit.

My uncle who’s raised 2 flocks of chicks saw them yesterday, and said my other birds look two weeks old already, because their wings are almost de-fluffed, but the leghorn still has all of her fluff. Could it be that the breeder gave me older chicks, and this leghorn is the only actual day-old I got?

She is the chick on the far bottom of the photo.

What would you guys do? I’m desperate for any advice to keep this sweet chick alive.

I truly have no idea what to do for her- please help!

 

[cleoandtheflock]

@Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock @casportpony

 

[21hens-incharge]

Can you get pictures of her beak issue in normal lighting? It won't hurt her to take her out for a couple minutes to get a pic of two.

Get a picture again in natural lighting of her and the biggest chick.

What is the temp under the light and at the far end out from under it?

What feed are you using?
Do the pieces seem similar to sand size or bigger?
Have you been checking their crops to make sure they are eating?

Can you try some wet feed?
Seriously they go nuts for wet feed. Simply add water to the chick feed to make a soup of sorts. It should be set but not thick and not watery. Offer it in a lid from sour cream or something similar.

These chicks were shipped from a breeder or hatchery?

 

[KatieAnnFrench]

Thank you so much for your questions and time!!

Picture of her beak posted in this reply. It’s very slight but I think it’s noticble.

Picture of her and the biggest chick posted here too. She is the yellow and black one I circled, the other circled chick is one of the biggest.

Temp under the light and at the far end out from under it?
- My thermometer broke on day 1, so I’ve been adjusting the light based on how the chicks moved around. They’ve been evenly dispersed, except this Leghorn usually stands under the light, but does not chirp. I just put a radiant heater/brooder in the box (in addition to the heat light) and she was under it for about 30 mins but hasn’t gone back since.

What feed are you using?
- Organic chick starter feed from Tractor Supply.
Do the pieces seem similar to sand size or bigger?
- Smaller, but some are clumped and a little bigger.
Have you been checking their crops to make sure they are eating?
- All the birds but the Leghorn have been eating, I can tell because I’ve been refilling their feeder consistently. I gave them some weeds with roots and they ate that quickly.

Can you try some wet feed?
Seriously they go nuts for wet feed. Simply add water to the chick feed to make a soup of sorts. It should be set but not thick and not watery. Offer it in a lid from sour cream or something similar.
- I tried this with the Leghorn, but she wasn’t interested. I’ll try this again tomorrow if she hasn’t improved.

These chicks were shipped from a breeder or hatchery?
- A hatchery, Purely Poultry in Wisconsin

Thank you so much for your time and advice. I am all ears!!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I’m nervous that something is wrong with my leghorn, because she is half the size of the other chicks. She hasn’t seem to grow at all in the 3 days I’ve had her, and she has just been standing and falling asleep all day, while the others run around her. My flock is: 2 orpingtons, 1 australop, 2 easter wggers, 1 golden laced wyandotte, and my exchequer leghorn.

The leghorn was happy/healthy on days 1-3, but it is day 4 and she has just been standing alone the entire day. I’ve been checking all chicks for pasting twice a day, and she hasn’t had it (yet). Until today, I didn’t notice any issues with her eating, drinking or popping. She is not laying down, just falling asleep while standing. When she walks, she moves slowly and not farther than a few steps.

I noticed that her beak is a tiny bit crossed, and I’m wondering if this is the start of cross-beak, and if that would affect her eating this early on.

Could it be that the breeder gave me older chicks, and this leghorn is the only actual day-old I got?

They’ve been evenly dispersed, except this Leghorn usually stands under the light, but does not chirp. I just put a radiant heater/brooder in the box (in addition to the heat light)

Do the pieces seem similar to sand size or bigger?
- Smaller, but some are clumped and a little bigger.

Have you been checking their crops to make sure they are eating?
- All the birds but the Leghorn have been eating, I can tell because I’ve been refilling their feeder consistently. I gave them some weeds with roots and they ate that quickly.

I would try the wet mash as suggested by @21hens-incharge mine love wet feed too
You mention you added heat to the brooder in addition to the heat lamp?
The Large Fowl chicks in your brooder photo look like they are already avoiding the heat if I'm looking at it right - food/water is on the "cooler" end correct?
You have 2 feeders in there, is one empty? Are you providing chick grit free choice since you are giving veggie treats?

I would take her out asap and try to get her hydrated. A little sugar water or if you have poultry Nutri-Drench that would be good. Dip her beak in the water or you can use a qtip to dip in the water and press it against her beak letting her take it in drop by drop.

Cross beak is considered a genetic deformity, though some feel like it could be from improper hatching. Either way, sometimes chicks that have a deformity has other developmental problems and fail to thrive or can be behind.
Leghorns are smaller than Large Fowl that you ordered, I would be more concerned about her behavior right now than size, she's not thriving it seems.
Hydration first, then wet feed. Make sure they have access to grit.

 

[SurferchickinSB]

View attachment 1727743 View attachment 1727744 Thank you so much for your questions and time!!

Picture of her beak posted in this reply. It’s very slight but I think it’s noticble.

Picture of her and the biggest chick posted here too. She is the yellow and black one I circled, the other circled chick is one of the biggest.

Temp under the light and at the far end out from under it?
- My thermometer broke on day 1, so I’ve been adjusting the light based on how the chicks moved around. They’ve been evenly dispersed, except this Leghorn usually stands under the light, but does not chirp. I just put a radiant heater/brooder in the box (in addition to the heat light) and she was under it for about 30 mins but hasn’t gone back since.

What feed are you using?
- Organic chick starter feed from Tractor Supply.
Do the pieces seem similar to sand size or bigger?
- Smaller, but some are clumped and a little bigger.
Have you been checking their crops to make sure they are eating?
- All the birds but the Leghorn have been eating, I can tell because I’ve been refilling their feeder consistently. I gave them some weeds with roots and they ate that quickly.

Can you try some wet feed?
Seriously they go nuts for wet feed. Simply add water to the chick feed to make a soup of sorts. It should be set but not thick and not watery. Offer it in a lid from sour cream or something similar.
- I tried this with the Leghorn, but she wasn’t interested. I’ll try this again tomorrow if she hasn’t improved.

These chicks were shipped from a breeder or hatchery?
- A hatchery, Purely Poultry in Wisconsin

Thank you so much for your time and advice. I am all ears!!

They may be too young for weeds and roots. When did you start feeding them that?

 

[KatieAnnFrench]

I would try the wet mash as suggested by @21hens-incharge mine love wet feed too
You mention you added heat to the brooder in addition to the heat lamp?
The Large Fowl chicks in your brooder photo look like they are already avoiding the heat if I'm looking at it right - food/water is on the "cooler" end correct?
You have 2 feeders in there, is one empty? Are you providing chick grit free choice since you are giving veggie treats?

I would take her out asap and try to get her hydrated. A little sugar water or if you have poultry Nutri-Drench that would be good. Dip her beak in the water or you can use a qtip to dip in the water and press it against her beak letting her take it in drop by drop.

Cross beak is considered a genetic deformity, though some feel like it could be from improper hatching. Either way, sometimes chicks that have a deformity has other developmental problems and fail to thrive or can be behind.
Leghorns are smaller than Large Fowl that you ordered, I would be more concerned about her behavior right now than size, she's not thriving it seems.
Hydration first, then wet feed. Make sure they have access to grit.

They may be too young for weeds and roots. When did you start feeding them that?

They may be too young for weeds and roots. When did you start feeding them that?

They may be too young for weeds and roots. When did you start feeding them that?

 

[KatieAnnFrench]

Thank you everyone for the advice! I’m using the metal feeder for water, and feeding them a bit of grass with dirt. I read that dirt can be used as grit- a few had a little bit of pasting the first few days after arriving, but that has since cleared up and hasn’t recurred (knock on wood). The Leghorn is still small, but is eating and drinking (more knocking on wood). She seems to prefer foraging for her food, so I’ve been putting small dishes of food around the brooder box. It might be time for a bigger box soon, since the others are growing so fast.

My main concern with her is that she’s still SO tiny! I just posted another thread to see if anyone’s experienced this with their Leghorn.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you everyone for the advice! I’m using the metal feeder for water, and feeding them a bit of grass with dirt. I read that dirt can be used as grit- a few had a little bit of pasting the first few days after arriving, but that has since cleared up and hasn’t recurred (knock on wood). The Leghorn is still small, but is eating and drinking (more knocking on wood). She seems to prefer foraging for her food, so I’ve been putting small dishes of food around the brooder box. It might be time for a bigger box soon, since the others are growing so fast.

My main concern with her is that she’s still SO tiny! I just posted another thread to see if anyone’s experienced this with their Leghorn.

You have : 2 orpingtons, 1 australop, 2 easter wggers, 1 golden laced wyandotte, and my exchequer leghorn.

All of those are Large Fowl except for the Leghorn, they are a much smaller bird than Large Fowl, so she is going to be tiny compared to them. Even in your first post, you mentioned what "grown weight" would be - Leghorn 3-5lbs compared to Large Fowl 5-8lbs she's going to be smaller than all of them her whole life. I have a White Leghorn, she's a itty bitty thing compared to my large layers, just the way it is.

The leghorn was added last minute to my order and the fully grown weight appears to be only 3-5 lbs., while the others should all be 5-8 lbs.

Do yourself a favor - while soil may contain sufficient grit sources - a bag of chick grit is relatively cheap and will last you for a few years worth of chicks. You can mix a bit of the grit in your soil that you gave them if you wish. I usually do, but having the right thing=peace of mind and no guessing whether soil is sufficient or not.

 

[KatieAnnFrench]

You have : 2 orpingtons, 1 australop, 2 easter wggers, 1 golden laced wyandotte, and my exchequer leghorn.

All of those are Large Fowl except for the Leghorn, they are a much smaller bird than Large Fowl, so she is going to be tiny compared to them. Even in your first post, you mentioned what "grown weight" would be - Leghorn 3-5lbs compared to Large Fowl 5-8lbs she's going to be smaller than all of them her whole life. I have a White Leghorn, she's a itty bitty thing compared to my large layers, just the way it is.


Do yourself a favor - while soil may contain sufficient grit sources - a bag of chick grit is relatively cheap and will last you for a few years worth of chicks. You can mix a bit of the grit in your soil that you gave them if you wish. I usually do, but having the right thing=peace of mind and no guessing whether soil is sufficient or not.

Thank you! I’m going to pick up the grit today. And thank you for the reply- that definitely calms my nerves knowing that she’s just going to be smaller than her buddies.