How do I tell if my chick is dehydrated?

[FandangoRanch]

I have a paralyzed Silver Laced Wyandotte I am trying to diagnose and treat. She is not eating/drinking on her own but I am hand feeding her chick grower with fluids. I am concerned she is getting dehydrated however. Her comb seems a little shriveled and I don't know if that is a sign. If she is I want to sub q fluids which I suspect could be done with a 5ml syringe and needle for a bird? (I am brand new to chickens).

 

[casportpony]

I have a paralyzed Silver Laced Wyandotte I am trying to diagnose and treat. She is not eating/drinking on her own but I am hand feeding her chick grower with fluids. I am concerned she is getting dehydrated however. Her comb seems a little shriveled and I don't know if that is a sign. If she is I want to sub q fluids which I suspect could be done with a 5ml syringe and needle for a bird? (I am brand new to chickens).

Source: http://avianmedicine.net/content/uploads/2013/03/07_emergency_and_critical_care.pdf

Supportive Care
SICK-BIRD ENCLOSURES
Sick birds are often hypothermic and should be placed
in heated (brooder-type) enclosures


b (Fig 7.7) in a quiet
environment (see Chapter 1, Clinical Practice). A temperature
of 85° F (29° C) with 70% humidity is desirable
for most sick birds. If brooders are not equipped with a
humidity source, placing a small dish of water in the
enclosure will often supply adequate humidity. A moist
towel that is heated and placed on the bottom of a cage
or incubator rapidly humidifies the environment, as indicated​

by the fogging of the acrylic cage front.

FLUID THERAPY
Oral Administration
Oral administration is the ideal method of giving fluids.
This method is more commonly used in mildly dehydrated
birds or in conjunction with subcutaneous (SC)
or intravenous (IV) therapy. Oral rehydration (30 ml/kg
PO q 6-8 h) also may be used in larger birds (eg, waterfowl)
that are difficult to restrain for parenteral fluid​

therapy.

ORAL NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS
Below are listed some of the oral nutritional supplements
that can be gavage-fed to debilitated birds. Various
hand-feeding formulas are on the market and, as a
whole, are far superior to the homemade formulas used
decades ago that contained monkey biscuits, peanut butter
and ground seeds. Commercially available hand-feeding
formulas for baby birds are often utilized in the treatment
of sick and debilitated adult birds. The quantity
that can be fed at one time to a sick bird is greatly
reduced from that of baby birds. On the average, a baby
parrot can accommodate 10% of its body weight per
feeding due to the elasticity of the crop and its rapid
emptying. Adult birds have a greatly decreased crop
capacity, averaging 3% of their body weight. Additionally,
sick birds are less tolerant of food in the crop and care
must be taken to avoid regurgitation and/or aspiration.
A sick or debilitated bird should always have its
hydration corrected prior to attempting to initiate​

oral gavage-feeding.

 

[FandangoRanch]

I gave oral hydration via syringe. Sorry, I have been doing acute care for a month and a half now, beginning with a day old coronation sussex that died at day 4, then 2 mycoplasma Hyosynoviae grower pigs, then a lame horse, a stomped on goat kid, two chickens with Marek's symptoms. I am getting a bit exhausted so pls forgive me. So trying to keep this SLW chickie alive for my grandson.

 

[casportpony]

I hear ya, my list is long, too... If you stick by oral administration of baby bird food mixed with water at 30ml/kg every 6-8 hours you shouldn't have any issues with dehydration. For me, syringe feeding requires way to much time, so I tube, it's much faster, take less than three minutes to gets supplies, mix food, catch bird and tube 120 ml.

-Kathy