I have an ISA brown chick about 6 weeks old. I got her with 4 others. The others are growing and are starting to feather out but she is still the size of a new chick. She is starting to get wing feathers. I wouldn't necessarily be worried but she seems to sleep alot, but does have awake times where she will walk over and pick at the food and I also have seen her at the water can. She is starting to get a "distended" belly where it feels fluidy and soft. and when she walks she is starting to waddle more I think because its hard to walk. I do see some poop marks on her back side so she must be pooping at least a little (but I feel like she hasn't been going enough?) She is not "pasted" up like i know some of them can get and I checked her vent and it doesn't seem to be blocked. Can they get blocked farther up in the digestive tract? I haven't really been able to find any info on that. Any suggestions I can try to get her to poop more?
I wish it were better circumstances. I am sorry to read about your tiny chick. I have seen several threads over the years about this sort of thing. It usually does not end well. I think it is likely there is something wrong with nutrient absorption. I know @azygous had a chick with similar issues a few years ago. Perhaps she can lend some insight.
Some chicks grow slower then other It's not their fault it's their gene issue But it's not a big issue You can treat it with Nutrition & Vitamin Support With Daily Hard Boiled Egg I Had Tried The Same On My Rooster It Works Great
Also try a tablespoon of plain yogurt to jump start her gut bacteria and grit or sand if she's eating anything other than chick starter. How's her poop? What color? Watery or solid? Chicks have a belly button too... have you checked that area for infection? Best of luck!
Thanks! I did end up taking her to the vet this afternoon. (the vet was awesome ) but she gave her some fluids and some stuff to help her start going poo. She was making a little poo here and there but not much and was starting to back up. So hopefully we get things moving and chick will be on her way back! And once she is back I will try the yogurt thing. My vet also gave me some good recommendations as! Here we go!
If she looks sick or not as energetic, I would treat for cocci. Your vet giving her fluids is a good thing. You may want to try making a wet mash from chick feed and water and stand her in front of it and maybe dip her beak in it or swab some on the side of her beak and do this every few hours until she catches on.