Quote: Heres what I found on twitching chicks ..
The head twitching could be in response to a packed crop. Chickens will sometimes flick their head, almost like they are trying to swallow something dry.
Brooder temp could be a bit warm (( raise the light up higher ))
and they aren’t getting enough to drink. ( ( add Cooler & Fresh Water ))
You might offer them soaked feed for a day and see if you notice a difference.
((Add a little water to their food so it is like thick oatmeal ))
Adding a tsp of raw ( can be Regular ) cider vinegar to a cup of their water can help balance digestion. You didn’t say how old these chicks are, but you could also offer some chopped greens and some grated apple to raise the fiber content of their diet and help them process food better.
A little live culture yogurt mixed with soaked feed can help give good digestive bacteria. Day old chicks need 95 – 100 F in the brooder, each week, as they feather more and grow, you can reduce the brooder temp by 5 – 10 degrees, if they continue being active with good appetites.
If this is a twitch with another cause, I would suspect the possibility of disease, internal or external parasites, though rare in such little ones, probably still in a brooder and not exposed to much.
My first line of defense in chicken health is to offer vitamins. Sometimes one vitamin out of balance can cause all kinds of problems. I hate to give medications, if vitamins might fix a problem.
Now that you have two chicks doing this, there is definitely something a miss in their lives. I think you will just need to continue monitoring and get the help of a veterinarian if they don’t improve.
One more thought….chicks, all birds really, are very sensitive to deodorizing sprays, even scented candles.
If these chicks are in the house and someone is using a product to mask chick odor, this could cause respiratory distress and even death.
I had a friend that sprayed Fabreeze in her kitchen and within 2 hours her beloved parakeets were dead. She called me horrified and sad and after a few minutes, finding out what changed in the kitchen recently, I was sure Fabreeze had killed her birds.
She had sprayed the kitchen curtains, just like she had seen on TV.) The product says it’s safe for animals, but it’s not, especially small birds.
I think I have my DH as addicted to chickens as I am! I talked him into building me a cabinet incubator. It will be big enough to hold 3 egg turners! I can not wait!
So cool how did you do it ? I need mine to be too !
How come when we were young, we didn't ask our husbands to be, if they liked chickens? Would have made things so much easier...
Back then I did nt know I liked chickens !
