My chick keeps sneezing?

[Ember2700]

Hello! I am new to all this. I was gifted my very first 2 chicks on May 17th. I was told they were 6 weeks old and were both road-island red hens. We were unprepared to say the least, we had nothing for them at all. So off we went to the store to try to get them set up. They are now in a rabbit cage. There is sand all across the bottom of the cage with a decent-ish size tuft of grass from the backyard to help keep them entertained. They have a water bowl, that we change out twice a day to keep them in fresh water, a small feeder, heat lamp with bulb, put in a stick that they roost on and slapped together a lil 'house'. There is the wood shaving bedding in there aswell.

Everything has seemed fine with them untill yesterday when we were cleaning the cage in the evening little Link started being highly vocal, she's the shy one of the 2. Since then we have herd her making a sneezing type noise here and there. They have been having loose, sometimes pure water, poops. Also sometimes when they are sitting/laying down I noticed some butt flaring(?) going on, no clue what that's about.

I am new to all this. I am worried there might be something wrong or something that I am not doing right. I am already in love with my 2 lil girls, Link and Zelda (yes i know link is a boy but he gets called zelda enough to have some identity issues lol) They are already very friendly with us and love being held and pet/cuddled with and even took decently, they don't freak-out and try to hide, to our Husky who loves them (she acts like they are her own). Please any advise, help or insight is welcomed.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2375492139138623

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I was gifted my very first 2 chicks on May 17th. I was told they were 6 weeks old and were both road-island red hens. We were unprepared to say the least, we had nothing for them at all.

heat lamp with bulb,

Everything has seemed fine with them untill yesterday when we were cleaning the cage in the evening little Link started being highly vocal, she's the shy one of the 2. Since then we have herd her making a sneezing type noise here and there. They have been having loose, sometimes pure water, poops. Also sometimes when they are sitting/laying down I noticed some butt flaring(?) going on, no clue what that's about.

Hi @Ember2700 Welcome To BYC

Cute chicks!
Can you get a photo of their poop?

That was a sneeze I heard, how often are you hearing that? It could be due to changing out the bedding and it was dusty. I would monitor her, if you notice any mucous, watery eyes, facial swelling, coughing or if the sneezing becomes frequent then I would be more concerned. Sometimes a sneeze is just that - dust, food/water in the nostrils - they can give a little snick to clear that.

Chick(en)s sometimes flair their tails/butts when sitting.

Do you have a coop ready or plans to get one soon? Chicks grow quickly and Rhode Island Reds are large fowl so they will need space. At minimum 4sqft each in the coop and 10sqft of run space. More is always better when we are talking about chickens

 

[Ember2700]

Hi @Ember2700 Welcome To BYC

Cute chicks!
Can you get a photo of their poop?

That was a sneeze I heard, how often are you hearing that? It could be due to changing out the bedding and it was dusty. I would monitor her, if you notice any mucous, watery eyes, facial swelling, coughing or if the sneezing becomes frequent then I would be more concerned. Sometimes a sneeze is just that - dust, food/water in the nostrils - they can give a little snick to clear that.

Chick(en)s sometimes flair their tails/butts when sitting.

Do you have a coop ready or plans to get one soon? Chicks grow quickly and Rhode Island Reds are large fowl so they will need space. At minimum 4sqft each in the coop and 10sqft of run space. More is always better when we are talking about chickens

Their poop is now normal. We believe they were overheating and so were drinking a ton of water (they were emptying their water dish often). We moved them to another room and now only put on the heat lamp at night or when it's chilly in the house and they seem to be doing well.

Link is still sneezing. It is happening still but just a sneeze and then after some time (seeming like a few hours on average) you will hear it again. No mucus, runny beak, watery eyes, swelling or coughing has been noticed (I picked them both up and took a good look and gently rubbed my finger down their face to make sure). I do catch them scratching their cheeks alot and they like to preen and clean their wing feathers (kinda looks like they peck/rub between the feathers, sometimes can catch them taking the feathers in their beaks and running the length of them through their beaks. They are not pulling any feathers out when they do this!).

We are in the process of building a small coop with attached run (partner is a carpenter for a living). Thank you so much for that info I will make sure to pass it on to the builder Plan on having the coop built by next weekend.

On a side note: The chicks are inside the house. Smokers in the house. Husky who is constantly at their brooder cage panting and pacing (on more then one occasion the husky's wagging tail has caused some of the sand and shavings in the brooder cage to be disturbed).

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I do catch them scratching their cheeks alot and they like to preen and clean their wing feathers (kinda looks like they peck/rub between the feathers, sometimes can catch them taking the feathers in their beaks and running the length of them through their beaks. They are not pulling any feathers out when they do this!).

Sounds like it could be environmental. I would not treat at all unless the sneezing became frequent (a couple of times a minute and constant).
They are at the age they are shedding a lot of dander and keratin sheaths as they grow in more feathers. You may see them scratch, I'm sure it's a little itchy with feathers coming in. Totally normal for them to preen - you may also seem them rub their face or beak on their tail. There is an oil gland there, you will be able to find that, it's a sensitive area, but it's a little bump - they get a little oil, then rub it into their feathers.

I'll tell you if you can convince the Carpenter to build big, do it! LOL You can never have enough space and....if you do have plenty of room, then you could say...doesn't that coop look a little empty?! I think we could add a couple of more chickens to balance it all out

 

[Ember2700]

Sounds like it could be environmental. I would not treat at all unless the sneezing became frequent (a couple of times a minute and constant).
They are at the age they are shedding a lot of dander and keratin sheaths as they grow in more feathers. You may see them scratch, I'm sure it's a little itchy with feathers coming in. Totally normal for them to preen - you may also seem them rub their face or beak on their tail. There is an oil gland there, you will be able to find that, it's a sensitive area, but it's a little bump - they get a little oil, then rub it into their feathers.

I'll tell you if you can convince the Carpenter to build big, do it! LOL You can never have enough space and....if you do have plenty of room, then you could say...doesn't that coop look a little empty?! I think we could add a couple of more chickens to balance it all out

Thank you ^_^ and sadly we don't have much space to work with living in a trailer park but by the end of the year we are planning to be out of here and then they can have all the room they want and there will be many more to come ^_^

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you ^_^ and sadly we don't have much space to work with living in a trailer park but by the end of the year we are planning to be out of here and then they can have all the room they want and there will be many more to come ^_^

No matter! You enjoy those 2 chickies that you have!
When you get your coop built, I would love to see it

 

[Ember2700]

No matter! You enjoy those 2 chickies that you have!
When you get your coop built, I would love to see it

Once the coop is built I will add pics ^_^

 

[debid]

Just FYI, the person who gave them to you either said six DAYS old or was otherwise very far off with their estimate. They look about 2.5 weeks old now.

 

[Ember2700]

Just FYI, the person who gave them to you either said six DAYS old or was otherwise very far off with their estimate. They look about 2.5 weeks old now.

She said 6 weeks. She has their brother and he already looks like a mini rooster. They have grown this past week alot and seem to be molting the fluffy feathers.


Zelda

Link