New at hatching incubated bantam eggs

[lem255]

My son has a incubator and has decided to hatch some chicken eggs. One of his eggs hatched Saturday night. We are new at this and put the little chick in a cardboard box with heat. Its Monday evening. It churps and moves around but does not stand or walk. It also wants to roll over on its back and lay there. It hasn't eaten or drank any water yet. What are we doing wrong. Please help. Remember this is very new to us. We do own a farm and have several chickens, but we have never tried to incubate eggs before.

 

[MoodyChicken]

He's probably having a hard time getting his footing on the cardboard. Put some papertowel down and that will help some. They are very clumsy their first few days, so don't worry too much about him rolling around and not moving much. If he still can't walk in a few days than there might be something wrong. Dip his beak in some water, sprinkle his food in front of him, and put some soft toys in the box to keep him company. Put pebbles in the water for the first 1-2 weeks to avoid a possible tragedy (they fall in and drown). Be sure he has a heat source, and also setup his box so that he can move into or away from the heat. Keep the water on the cold side. Good luck!

 

[lem255]

Thanks for the advice. I have actually put cloth in the cardboard box to help with the heat. I just now checked it and it is laying on its back sleeping. Sometimes it looks like its not breathing. Is this normal? Should I roll him over?

 

[barnwife]

sometimes they just are learning to use their legs and don't have the energy to flip back over.

Try giving some plain yogurt mixed with a little egg yolk (boiled), apple cider vinegar, and a little bit of oil.

This helps with a lot of the energy issues, and the yogurt seems to really give their appetites a boost.

Good luck!

 

[MoodyChicken]

Use the yogurt sparingly though! It is a GREAT first food, but too much will give them the runs. I like to give them whole milk, sugar, electrolytes, and probiotics as their first meal. They get a good mouth full of thattt and that's it for the first day. Then I wrap them tight in a towel and let them sleep for 24 hours. By day 2 they're living terrors.

 

[lem255]

Do you give them just plain yogurt? Also what should the temperature be when keeping them warm. We have him under a light.