Help! Sick 4 day old chick!

[cfabe]

We just got 25 chicks from McMurray, our first time with chickens. They were all fine when we opened the box Sunday and seemed fine Monday. Today one of the buff orpingtons was very lethargic, I noticed it had a pasted up butt. I cleaned the butt with warm water and it pooped a couple times, but not a large amount. The chick is still very lethargic, just laying there in the brooder. I dipped it's beak in some sugar water a number of times and it seemed to swallow it. It was not interested in food and I didn't know if you could force feed them or not so I didn't try. It does seem significantly smaller than the other chicks.

Is there anything else I should do to help it out? Should I separate it from the rest?

This is my first post here but I've been lurking quite a while. Thanks for any advice.

 

[Guinea Goonie]

Stop with the sugar water. This should only be given once as they recover from the postal trip.

Give the little one some water with a touch of molasses and then isolate him for awhile. Keep him warm and put down some starter ground up in a coffee grinder on paper towels so he will see it.

 

[chookchick]

I made a little "quarantine" area for my special needs chick. I took hardware cloth and bent it into a circle. Part of the circle is under the brooder light, part not, so she can pick a temp. I put food and water in small measuring cups, and a feather duster! (got the idea on BYC, she loves it!). Best of luck with your little one, sometimes they just don't thrive.

 

[cfabe]

I made a "quarantine" like you described but out of cardboard. Unfortunately the chick had died when we went back to check on it an hour later. Thanks for the advice.

 

[happyhensny]

I received chicks from MM. Out of 13 black silkies, 3 have died within the first 36 hours. Their customer service rep said to call back at 48 hrs to either get credit or chicks. Tomorrow is the day to call - we'll see what happens...

 

[farmer macdonald123]

that always happens some are weaker than others this has happend to me on many occasions

 

[fourfeathers]

I took a 2 day old from the farmstore that seemed smaller than the others and was sitting back on her hocks not standing (no slipped tendons, just too weak in the legs). Put her under the lamp in a cage with a blanket because she couldn't navigate the wire bottom. Gave her vitamins, pedialyte, watered down mash first couple days and she seemed to gradually get stronger until she was eating on her own and walking about more steady, although she would lose her balance easily if jostled by the other chick she was with. Seemed to be doing better, then on day 4 she took a turn and went downhill. She died that night. Sometimes the weaker ones just don't make it. I guess we just don't know what all could be going on internally with heart,lungs, etc. sigh.