New chicken mom, new chick, need HELP

[NayAlexander]

I just got 12 chicks yesterday. All hatched Monday, and all seem to be doing well, except for 1. She seems pretty lethargic. Gets out from under the heater sometimes, but I don’t know that I’ve seen her eat, for sure. I’ve given her water with the vital pack in it, and also regular water, and the hatchery is closed, but their site says to try raw egg yolk for a lethargic baby, and water. She drinks and has eaten the yolk, but other than that, she’s not doing well. She’s got this crackly sound right where her belly is, and I can feel it crackle. It happens every 30-60 sec. I saw a previous post, but no outcome, does anyone have experience with this? What should I do to help her? I’d hate for her to die, and I don’t want her to be miserable. Sometimes she’s standing under the heater, other times, she looks dead. No movement unless I touch her.
I’m so sad.

 

[Aunt Angus]

The crackling is something I'm not familiar with. I find that lethargic chicks perk up with a little NutriDrench or sugar water.

Let's see what other more experienced folks say.

@Eggcessive
@azygous
@Wyorp Rock
@coach723

 

[NayAlexander]

The crackling is something I'm not familiar with. I find that lethargic chicks perk up with a little NutriDrench or sugar water.

Let's see what other more experienced folks say.

@Eggcessive
@azygous
@Wyorp Rock
@coach723

Thank you for tagging people! I posted on a chicken group on fb hours ago and no one has responded. I’ve read the crackling sound is just their digestive tract, and a couple of the other chicks also have it. I should have mentioned that, but they are all SO active. Eating and drinking, perfectly.
The chick I’m worried about, I don’t know her breed. She’s the only one in the flock I can’t identify just yet, and I should mention that she did have a little poop on her backside. I used a warm, wet paper towel to clean her, and earlier when she came out from under the heater, I’m not sure if she pooped or not. A couple others popped out as well and there were multiple fresh piles of poop. (I had JUST cleaned all the droppings out moments beforehand) I’m just not sure if one was hers or not. When I check on her, I check her bottom for evidence of poop, nothing since I cleaned her a couple hours ago.

 

[NayAlexander]

UPDATE: she pooped! It’s really white with a tiny bit of green

 

[Eggcessive]

The poop stuck on her vent is pasty butt, and I would examine all of them daily for the next week, and clean off. My chicks with that would have it more than once for the first few days. Clicking can sometimes be a sign of a leaking air sac (subcutaneous emphysema) so I would feel of her for any signs of air under skin like a little balloon. Get her drinking well, and electrolytes are good. Poultry NutriDrench 1-2 drops is very good.

 

[NayAlexander]

The poop stuck on her vent is pasty butt, and I would examine all of them daily for the next week, and clean off. My chicks with that would have it more than once for the first few days. Clicking can sometimes be a sign of a leaking air sac (subcutaneous emphysema) so I would feel of her for any signs of air under skin like a little balloon. Get her drinking well, and electrolytes are good. Poultry NutriDrench 1-2 drops is very good.

Thanks for getting back to me. Unfortunately, she didn’t make it through the night. I’m so sad. She started pooping like normal, and I naively thought she’d make it because she started perking up a bit, but she died about an hour or so ago. I have been examining all the chicks for pasty butt. Only a couple have had issues, but I check them throughout the day when I go in to scoop the poop off the wood chips.
Thanks again.

 

[Aunt Angus]

I'm sorry about your chick. Some are just too weak and fail to thrive. There really isn't anything more you could have done. It just happens sometimes. But knowing that doesn't make it any less sad...

 

[NayAlexander]

So I checked the rest of the girls this morning, 4 more were looking bad. 1 died within a few hours, but I’ve been trying different things with the others. 2 out of the remaining 3 birds of concern are seeming better. They’re eating and drinking on their own, pooping just fine, and moving a little slower and sleeping more than the others, but starting to seem normal. One isn’t doing well, I’m hoping it turns around for her as well, but we’ll see. Thanks for all the advice!

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry that you lost the chick. Hopefully, the others will all survive and do well.