Only 1 chick out of 3 survived shipment - HELP!!!

[craigschmeg]

To anyone with lots of experience raising chicks:

My son and I are newbies to raising chicks. The good and bad news so far: we got three chicks delivered yesterday from a hatchery in Ohio. One chick was DOA and a 2nd was close to it and died last night. A local hatchery has chicks coming in about 1-2 weeks and I'm planning to get 3 more chicks. I have 3 urgent questions:

1) I'm very worried about have a 5 day old chick alone for 1-2 weeks till I get 3 more chicks. She seems to be doing extremely well (eating, drinking, moving around) but will she (Tina) be okay for 1-2 weeks in the brooder by herself... or should I try and find someplace where I can get 3 chicks ASAP?

2) If I can't get chicks for 1-2 weeks, any suggestions on what to do to help Tina survive along..?

3) Will introducing 3 new, younger chicks into the brood be a problem?

I realize I may be worrying too much but I've read so much about chicks needing company. Thanks for any help.

 

[sumi]

Sorry to hear about your losses. Tina will be o.k. by herself for awhile as long as she gets lots of attention from you, so she knows she's not all alone. Some members say putting a mirror in the brooder helps with lone chicks and something soft and cuddly for her to snuggle up against. I doubt you'll have any problems introducing new chicks when you can get some. Small chicks are more curious than aggressive and she will probably be only to happy to have some company.

 

[silkiechicken]

At that age, a week or two will not be too big of a deal when mixing them. If the lone chick eats and drinks, I also would not worry about it needing a friend asap. Just tap on food and water to encourage it. Lone chicks do make it to adult hood, just sometimes they lack chicken social skills and it takes a bit for them to learn.

 

[3riverschick]

get her a small stuffed creature to cuddle with. She may be lonely. Hold her and snuggle her . Just pick chicks which are within a week fo her age. Might pick up a bottle of Poultry Nutri-Drench for her and the next chicks. It's great for dealing with travels tress which may be what took you other two. https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/746509/how-to-deal-with-travel-stress-in-baby-chicks
Best,
Karen

 

[Sonia]

I had a similar situation once. Penguin ended up a lone survivor and of course we spoiled her rotten until we could get more chicks, not only did she thrive she never did bond with the other chicks. She wasn't mean to them, she just felt that she belonged with humans and not birds. Penguin ended up being a house bird, diapers and all.