Is imprinting something that happens and effects chicks negatively?

Talehlee

Hatching
Mar 9, 2022
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3
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Is it possible for chicks to imprint before getting them somehow?

My little gray chick chirps nonstop, and as one of the smallest it's concerning for me - but she is always much happier when we are holding her and quiets down almost immediately. She spends nearly all her time under the brood lamp, but the temps on that side of the brooder are around 95 - going to around 75 on the opposite side. Her crop also feels gritty still, so I've been trying to dip her beak in the water but have yet to see her actively drinking. Eats fine still. But my husband, who is attached to her now, thinks she imprinted to a hen and wants to feel like she's under something instead of jump a lamp. She calms down more when the other chicks snuggle up, but they are more active and don't stay with her all the time. I am worried she's going to end up as failure to thrive based off such little growth compared to the others. I have a scale coming in tomorrow to monitor weight gain in everyone and start documenting them a little bit better than I have been, we have named only one - and it's this one. My four year old specifically picked her out, and gave her the name Popit, so I am going to do everything in my power to ensure that this one has the best chance possible. I've tossed on pictures of her, she's barely the size of my palm but has started growing out the wing feathers so 7+days? And pictures of the brooder setup, and her circled in the last one to show how small she is compared to the others.
 

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She already is a FTT chick, being smaller. What she's doing is trying to get warm, and your hands are warm so that's why she likes to be cuddled. That's okay.

The reason she can't get warm is because her organs are likely immature and she isn't able to process calories efficiently. Her liver is likely under sized as is her digestive system, including crop function. She needs more frequent feedings than the others, especially water. Give her, and the others, finely minced boiled egg or crumbled tofu.

Get a slender oral syringe from your pharmacy if you don't have one, or use an eye dropper. If you haven't yet, buy some Poultry Nutri-drench. This is a vitamin solution formulated to by-pass the liver so it doesn't have to be metabolized. It goes right into her blood stream. Give her warm water with the Nutri-drench every half hour until she's drinking regularly on her own.

To safely put liquids into a chick, pry open the beak and insert the dropper or syringe into the chick's right side of the beak just under the tongue. This helps to avoid the airway in the center of the throat and above the tongue. Allow the chick to swallow after each drop.
 
So I did get her to eat some, and I have seen her eating- I was able to coax a few drops of water in and basically everytime she starts going off I try again. I don't have any of the nutri stuff but can take a trip for it tomorrow, just concerned about the now. She is much more lethargic today than yesterday, and wasn't swallowing the water like the others do(head back) but it did still look like she swallowed some. I could do some sugar water but not sure if that'd help, and I have some pedialyte but it's not plain since it's for my daughter since she was sick a bit today. The only other small one is actively drinking on her own, and I've seen her poop although it was a bit watery. Mind you that one did have a bit of pasty butt, not fully blocked though. My daughter picked the gray one because it was sleeping under the brood lamp at the store. In hindsight, that was probably a sign it was already failing but I had no idea at the time.
 
As for getting it under her tongue her beak is barely bigger than my pinky nail width so I'm not sure how to hold her to get that done. But she does accept the water it seems. Try as I might to get her to drink on her own she won't though.
 
I am brand new but I saw a picture of someone put a feather duster hanging in the box off the ground that chicks could go under like mom, maybe that would help her be warm and comfy while you do the other suggested things to help her? I don’t think the color matters! Good luck- I found 2 orphaned 3 week old kittens and had to force bottle feed one of them to keep her alive. She’s 3 now and the vet just told me she needs to go on a diet! Keep trying and hoping, and if it doesn’t work at least you know you tried and she was as warm and safe and happy as you could get her.
 
If you don't have nutri-drench a little molasses in water will help. Just dip her beak it in and she will drink what's on her beak. Repeat every few minutes until her energy is up
 

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