new chick - might be dying?

[shaggy]

just got a call from the wife -- says one of the chicks is dying

it's the smallest one of the 4

she says it is laying down with its wings spread out ... she'll touch it and it won't move, but will open its eyes for a few seconds

all the others are just stepping around it ... best guess on age -- a week old give or take a few days


i get off work in 2 hours

--- anything i should check for when i get home?

 

[Sequin]

Maybe it is too hot? Try holding it a bit and offering a bit of sugar water to see if it perks up. You can give the sugar water with an eye dropper to sort of force feed it to make sure it gets some down its baby throat. But it might just be too hot and very sleepy.

 

[bubbazmommy]

I would have her seperate it from the rest and try to get it to drink some sugar water.

 

[shaggy]

good call --- i will get her to do that --- anything i should check for when i get home?

 

[Sequin]

If that doesn't do the trick by the time you get home, you can check for pasty butt, or gasping, or injury or congestion. But chances are there won't be much to find or check for that your wife hasn't already alerted you to. Let us know if the suggestions do the trick. Just out of curiosity, but is this chick black? Are they all the same color/breed? I ask only because I have one black chick in with a few that are brown and light brown/gold and the black one always seems to be hotter than the rest. I suspect it is because the black color attracts heat more than the lighter colored chicks. So I was just wondering if maybe it was the same thing.

 

[shaggy]

Quote:
neither of us are very sure what to look for -- i've had them since Saturday afternoon

the chick is darker than the rest --- dark brown back with reddish down and brown wing feathers

they should all be the same breed



i thought the same thing - about it being too hot - since it was just laying there with its wings spread out ... they are in a tupperware tub in the garage with the lid most of the way on --- it stays 80-85 degree's in the garage this time of year

 

[Sequin]

It could still be too hot for the little one, especially if the air is still. I would try a cooler location first to see if the chick picks up. Then you will know for sure. And if not, it gives you a starting point to move from.

 

[shaggy]

nvm --- it's dead

 

[Sequin]

Oooohhh, I am SOOO sorry!!!

 

[shaggy]

thanks

wish i would have been able to get home a bit sooner ... the wife says no more until i finish the chicken coop


luckily someone nearby has just hatched a bunch of Rhode Island Reds so I should be able to get a new one before my daughter gets too depressed.