New chicks checklist....

[Medda]

Also, a quick question - the chicks were hatched last Tuesday, can I give them some hard boiled egg mashed up as a treat now? Do I need to give chick grit with the egg?

I have some chick grit but haven’t introduced it yet. I also got some dried mealworms yesterday - how soon can I give them a couple of those?
Thanks Medda

 

[aart]

They don't need grit for boiled egg yolk,
but the for white and mealworms I would put grit out.

They really don't need anything else to eat but chick feed.
For your entertainment and theirs,
go dig up a hunk of sod out of the yard(as long as you don't treat your grass with anything).
That'll keep 'em busy and start some immunity exercise.

ETA: your brooder looks great!!

 

[Medda]

@aart, thanks. Unfortunately I just found one chick dead this morning. All were fine at bedtime last night, had been eating and drinking, running around. Went in to spend some time observing them this morning and noticed I only counted 11. Got to looking and found one dead under the edge of edge of MHP.

This chick was an Ameraucana/Easter Eggers and was the largest by far - at least a 1/3 larger than the next biggest chick. The chick was laying on its side with legs straight out. When I picked the chick up, rigor hadn’t completely set in but the chick was a little stiff. They wen5 under MHP around 5:30 yesterday evening and I found the chick at around 7:00 this morning. No signs of injury, vent was a little poopy but not crusted over and I hadn’t noticed any signs of distress from any of the chicks yesterday evening.

Any idea what could have happened? All of the other 11 chicks are fine this morning.
Thanks Medda

 

[Blooie]

I’m sorry you lost a chick. Could be about anything....sadly they die under heat lamps, MHP, commercial brooding plates, and even under broody hens and we sometimes don’t ever find out why.

He could have had some internal abnormalities that just overwhelmed his ability to cope as his little system was maturing. Could be delayed shipping stress. He could have become trapped under MHP or between the layers of the setup and overheated or smothered. I think we’ve all lost chicks at one point or another no matter how well we take care of them.

My last batch of 15 Silkies were dropping like flies...I think you remember that, right @aart? I was driving myself crazy trying to figure out what the heck was going on, then realized that I still had strong chicks I needed to focus on. I hadn’t changed a thing in the brooder setup or anything, and they were kept inside far longer than previous batches as I tried to get a handle on what was happening. But man, after not losing any chicks batch after batch, ending up with only 9 out of 15 was a bitter blow! After exhausting all theories about the usual culprits, the bottom line is I had healthy chicks to focus on and needed to get at that instead of beating my head against the wall!

Check your heating pad construction....make sure there are no little gaps where they can get trapped. Make sure the bag of food is fresh. Watch for a serious bully in the group. And focus on those you have left rather than beating yourself up. I’d even put a layer of paper towels down in the brooder, right on top of whatever you have in the bottom if you have to, and keep an eye on their poop for a day or so to see if that’s normal. Other than that, there isn’t much you can do unless you start to see issues in any more chicks. Again, I’m sorry you lost one.

 

[moniquem]

Little piggies lining up for chow, how cute!

 

[aart]

Any idea what could have happened? All of the other 11 chicks are fine this morning.
Thanks Medda

Aw, bummer.
Eh....impossible to say. Some just don't make it thru the first few days.
That's why I like to be able to easily lift the mhp to check on them,
have found a couple dead under there.

 

[Blooie]

You’ve had your system going longer than I’ve been doing this, @aart. If I remember right, your pseudo heating plate thread was started a year almost to the day before I put mine up. You are so right about being able to lit up the front and checking every so often, especially that first week. I just forgetted to said that, and glad you did!

 

[Medda]

Thanks everyone. The MHP is constructed with the heating pad secured to the underside of the frame and then both the pad and frame are enclosed in an old pillow case. I have an old towel covered in Press n Seal over the top of the frame. As for the flooring, I’m using puppy pads and changing them out every day. Haven’t seen any unusual poops (no blood, too runny, etc.).

I now have another chick that seems kind of “off”. Not as active as yesterday and not really showing much desire to eat or drink. I’ve given that chick a drop of PND directly so we’ll see if it helps. The chick isn’t gasping or seems to be in any distress, vent is clear, and it appears alert, just not active.

I’ll be keeping a close eye on them today.
Thanks again all, the knowledge is greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Medda

 

[aart]

You’ve had your system going longer than I’ve been doing this, @aart. If I remember right, your pseudo heating plate thread was started a year almost to the day before I put mine up.

I think I build my first in 2014...others were also doing it about that time.

 

[Medda]

I’m really concerned about the one chick. Even after direct PND a couple of hours ago, the chick still shows no interest in food or water, not even mashed egg yolk. This chick is staying under MHP and is not active at all. No peeping and is not gasping, the vent is clear. Noticed also this chick doesn’t seem to be growing, at least not nearly as much as the other 10.

Is there anything else I can do?