Midget Chick?

[Lilorp14]

So I have this Buff Silkie chick that was hatched around June 9th. I got her at a poultry swap and she hasn't grown a bit. She eats and drinks regularly, but only has a few pinfeathers. Compared to chicks that are 2 days younger than her, you'd think she was hatched a week ago. I thought Mareks, but she hasn't really showed any symptoms. One odd thing about her is that she is constantly sitting. Its not that she's in pain or lethargic or anything, its just that I usually encounter her on the ground. She is also the first one to complain if the food or water is out.

(Here she is, sitting as usual. That is her younger-by-2-days brother.)

 

[Kessel23]

I'm not sure what's wrong with her but she does look a little small for her age and the sitting is kind of weird. Silkies are really slow growers so it isn't really fair to compare them to the larger, and faster growing, Polish but I do think there could be something wrong with her but I am not sure what it is or how to treat it.

 

[Lilorp14]

I'm not sure what's wrong with her but she does look a little small for her age and the sitting is kind of weird. Silkies are really slow growers so it isn't really fair to compare them to the larger, and faster growing, Polish but I do think there could be something wrong with her but I am not sure what it is or how to treat it.

Ok, thanks. There are a few silkies that are her same age and are about 1/3 bigger.

 

[KikiLeigh02]

So it hasn't grown at all or just isn't growing as much? Has that chick always been smaller? Maybe it's a bantam?

 

[Lilorp14]

So it hasn't grown at all or just isn't growing as much? Has that chick always been smaller? Maybe it's a bantam?

It isn't growing much. She has a little bit of pinfeathers but she is barely increasing in size at all. She was a little smaller when I first got her but now that all her brothers and sisters are sprouting up she's only about 1/3 the size of a paint Silkie chick that is about 3 days younger than her. They're all bantams, or at least were advertised as such. I saw her parents (In the flesh, the breeder was selling them), and they were definitely bantams.

 

[AceWeasel]

I had a silkie that started off growing really slowly. She wore out faster than the other chicks we got and was barely managing to keep up with the growth rate of the two Sebrights we started with. She ate and drank and pooped well, but she seemed to tire out a whole lot more than the Sebrights and the other silkies. We just kept an eye on her for any further issues. She wound up with a case of wryneck, but that cleared up and could have been caused by one of the other chicks walking on her while she was napping.

The amusing thing is while she definately had some issues, she was a very atypical looking silkie and seemed to have a mind that worked in a way I'd describe as "slow yet deliberate", she eventually started growing and turned out to be the tallest of the silkies. she wasn't top quality, but her personality was great and she liked attention. I really wish we had her longer, but unfortunately there was a freak accident where a branch fell off a tree and managed to land right on her. Poor thing didn't stand a chance. But she was happy while we had her.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

One odd thing about her is that she is constantly sitting. Its not that she's in pain or lethargic or anything, its just that I usually encounter her on the ground. She is also the first one to complain if the food or water is out.

How often does the food or water run out?
Photos of her poop?
Does she seem to have any trouble walking, leg deformity, staggered gait, etc.?

I would give her some Poultry Nutri-Drench. 1-3drops direct dose per day for a week.
Weigh her so you have a baseline weight to go by, then weigh her at the same time a couple of times a week to see if she is gaining or not.

 

[Lilorp14]

How often does the food or water run out?
Photos of her poop?
Does she seem to have any trouble walking, leg deformity, staggered gait, etc.?

I would give her some Poultry Nutri-Drench. 1-3drops direct dose per day for a week.
Weigh her so you have a baseline weight to go by, then weigh her at the same time a couple of times a week to see if she is gaining or not.

The other chicks love to dig all of the food out of the bin, so even if the ground is covered with food I put in 2 hours ago and all of the other chicks are pecking it up from there, she'll be standing at the edge of the bin peeping up a storm. No leg deformity that I can see, but she does have that new chick walk. Not imbalanced or anything, just the 'one foot in front of the other', like she has to think about it. I'll try and get some pics of her poop after I get home from work. Where would I find some of the Nutri-Drench?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You can find Poultry Nutri-Drench at feed stores like Tractor Supply.