My chick died. Please help me figure out what happened.

[DianaM]

I had 3 chickens. They are about 2-3 months old. I don't know exactly because I rescued them when someone left them off in a box. They have the feathers on their wings & body, but they haven't developed combs, etc. They are just forming on a couple.

One of them would not come out of the cage when I let them out. It just sat there. I picked it up & cradled it in my hands. It's neck flopped around and it couldn't seem to hold it up. It got up some energy & flew out of my hands, but just fell & lay there with liquid coming from its mouth. It died.

I have 2 other chicks still & need to know why the one died so I can correct what is wrong. PLEASE help! I'm new to this. I know those of you that have raised chickens & entire flocks are probably used to this, but I've been raising these chicks as pets. I've grown attached to them & having one of them die basically in my hands is awful.

 

[Minchi]

Were they without water and food for a while? The only thing I could think of is dehydration or malnutrition. You might make mash (water and feed) for the others. It will help them digest the food easier. You could also mix plain Greek yogurt with their food if they are eating okay just to help strength them. Mine when they were young really loved a mix of feed, Greek yogurt, and bananas.

It might have also been stress, I have read that a little sugar in there water will help them if that is the cause.

Good luck.

 

[DianaM]

We give them water & feed them Start & Grow. They seem to eat & drink well. I started letting them out of their cage so they could move around in my garage a couple of days ago.

 

[DianaM]

What do you think I did wrong? Will it affect the others?

 

[TeamChaos]

I'm sorry for your loss! Is there any way the chicken could have gotten a hold of moldy feed or something else "off"? When I hear "flopping neck" I think of botulism (in spoiled food), wry neck (lack of specific vitamins), or a traumatic injury that led to swelling in the brain. I'm not an expert by any means, those are just some possibilities. I hope everyone else stays healthy for you.

 

[Minchi]

I'm sorry for your loss! Is there any way the chicken could have gotten a hold of moldy feed or something else "off"? When I hear "flopping neck" I think of botulism (in spoiled food), wry neck (lack of specific vitamins), or a traumatic injury that led to swelling in the brain. I'm not an expert by any means, those are just some possibilities. I hope everyone else stays healthy for you.

if it is botulism this will help

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/19/botulism

Also there is a drop down list of illnesses that you could also reference just in case.