Newly hatched chick abandoned by mother, don't have a heat lamp

[Burkle]

Hello a we put 6 eggs under a broody hen a few weeks ago and yesterday 5 of the 6 chicks hatched. We returned there this morning and the mother hen had abandoned the remaining egg. We could hear cheeping in the remaining egg so we hatched it ourselves and the chick in it was alive.

We've taken it inside but we are unsure how to keep it warm because we don't have a heat lamp or heat pad. We've been using a hair dryer from a distance for the past hour put we are worried we might be overheating it so we've been turning it on and off.

The chick is occasionally kicking, flapping and cheeping but is still very weak and hasn't really attempted to stand.

Is the hairdryer ok or is it overheating it? Is there anything else we could use to keep it warm? How long until the chick is healthy enough to return to its mother?

Any advice is appreciated

 

[Hybridchucks]

At some point tonight (when its very dark) put her under her mom and check her in the morning.....

 

[SIMZ]

How did you "hatch" it? Did the egg somehow hatch on its own, or did you take it out of the egg?

If it's at all possible, you need to go get a heat lamp. In the meantime, maybe get a hot water bottle (Or some source of warmth) and put that and the chick in a shoe box or something with a towel to keep some warmth around it. After hatching, chicks tend to just be still and regain some strength.

Sometimes if eggs are spaced too far apart the mother will leave eggs that haven't hatched yet to go find food and water with her other chicks that are ready. Ideally, you'd want the chick up on its feet and pretty mobile (1 day usually) before slipping it back under the hen in the evening when she takes the other chicks in for the night. Make sure you put it back when she's in the for night or the chick will not be able to keep up and she'll leave it again.

Best of luck!

 

[Burkle]

We've just used a normal lamp, but put it quite close to the chick

Here's some photos http://imgur.com/a/oac17

Is that ok? I'm worried we might blind it cus it's very close to the lamp and it's very bright

 

[SIMZ]

As long as it's putting off heat it's probably ok short term, but the newer LED and other bulbs are just super bright and don't put off much heat. So, again, a small watt regular bulb, heat lamp or water bottle and towels are your best bet.

Hopefully, you can get it back out tonight so anything is just a temporary fix. Your chick is a cutie!

 

[Burkle]

Ok we've had it under a lamp for about 6 hours now and fed it a bit of sugar water. It's still cheeping and fidgeting.

It is trying to lift its head but hasn't managed to do so yet and it's eyes are still closed. It has been 5 hours so I'm wondering if it's taking longer than usual or if this is normal.

Again thanks for the help

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Have you tried giving it back to the mother? If she accepts it, problem solved. The alternative is a heating pad.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I would put it back in the nest box when the mother is sitting in there. She will warm and it will dry. It is the same age as the others so it should be fine.

 

[Hybridchucks]

2x i would try and put her back with her mom§a when its dark...

 

[Burkle]

Ok it's up and moving now, cheeping away and trying to get out of the basket! Full recovery it seems. We are going to put it back under the mother tonight and hopefully that'll be it sorted.

Thanks again for or the advice, I'll tell you how it goes tomorrow