Labored breathing in 11 day old small chick

[sarahq]

Hello, I am new to chicks, up to this point they have all been healthy. They are all 11 days old. I have one salmon Faverolle that is half the size of the others. She has been breathing heavily since last night. Eating, drinking, and going to the bathroom normally. She is a little lethargic and stays under the light. I thought maybe she was too hot so I took her out of the brooder and the same fast/heavy breathing. She has been small since day one and we keep wondering if the snuck a bantam in on us. Any healthful advice would be appreciated, but I this is my first batch of chicks so speak slowly and use small words.

 

[azygous]

If this small chick is feathering out and is at the same stage as the larger chicks, it's possible it could be a bantam mistakenly included with standards.

What's more likely is your chick is "failure-to-thrive", judging from the other symptoms you describe - lethargic, trouble breathing, and staying under the heat.

Those symptoms may indicate a chick whose organs are underdeveloped and whose immune system is under par, and whose body isn't able to utilize calories from food to generate body heat.

That it's survived this long is an encouraging sign. You might be able to help it by putting it on Poultry Nutri-drench and by feeding it special foods such as minced boiled egg and crumbled tofu. These are practically "pre-digested" allowing for easy absorption of nutrients.

I had such a chick. It had all the symptoms yours does. I did the things I recommended you do for your chick, and he survived to maturity, although he was on the small side. No, he was not an accidental bantam, and it's also unlikely your chick is.

 

[sarahq]

Thank you! I have been feeding them boiled eggs and watching her closely. I am getting ready to go to the store and will try the nutridrench and tofu. She is just such a tiny little nugget and am hoping she makes it!

 

[sarahq]

Also I just noticed her beak is moving like she is chirping but no noise is coming out. She will chirp occasionally.

 

[azygous]

She's getting weak. The Nutri-drench should help. If you can't get to the store real quickly, give her some tepid sugar water. It may give her a temporary boost.

How are her poops? Does she strain when she goes? Are the poops like the other chicks'?

 

[sarahq]

Thank you for all the advice, unfortunately right after I posted she had some kind of seizure and passed.

 

[azygous]

I'm so sorry.