Failure to thrive??

[aymer]

Ruth has always been the smallest chick. she is a 10 week old black cooper maran and her brothers and sisters are buff orpington/maran mixes. i did not worry about her because she is a different breed than the others. we were away visiting family for the past ten days and when we got back i was started to get worried because she is half the size of the other girls. she feels boney and her pouch always seemed to be empty. she has low energy compared to the rest. when i bring treats out she does not go crazy trying to get at it like the rest.

yesterday, i started bringing her in the house to eat. i am feeding her scrambled eggs with a little plain yogurt and water with a multivitamin in it. her pouch always seems full now. i kept her inside this morning to make sure she was pooping and she is. she is peeping loudly right now and wants to go back outside but when i bring her outside she sits in a corner of the yard and naps. i am afraid my hens are going to get her.

here is my question - is she the runt and having failure to thrive? does she just need a little extra attention or should i be concerned about something else?

any advise would be great!

 

[Brindlebtch]

I had a couple of BLRW runts. I was advised by friends on this board to feed them scrambled eggs mixed with baby vitamins (no iron) w/ a little yogurt. Helped a lot and they started growing out feathers. I don't know if they will ever be normal sized, though.

Maybe somebody with more knowledge will give an opinion.

 

[aymer]

thanks for the advise. i am concerned because she has her adult feathers (they are beautiful and shiny) and looks good until you pick her up. after reading other message boards i am starting to question an intestinal parasite? but she is eating and drinking when separated from the flock? i wish we had a chicken vet around here!