Only one chick left....what to do

[ChickenCanoe]

You can get some great heat emitters that screw into a socket just like a bulb, but don't emit any light. They are generally used for reptile habitats; but, they work great for brooders

Just make sure you use a bakelite or ceramic socket or it will melt a plastic one.

If the container is small they could easily have gotten overheated.
I let someone chick sit a couple when I was out of town. The heat lamp was too large and the rubbermaid container too small and they fried.

 

[M4Ahmed16]

The box is placed indoors and next to the window in the morning and afternoon so that the chicks can get sunlight. I place this mattress that new born babies sleep on in the box, and on top of it I place a newspaper. I give them millet to eat. At night I place them in a sweater and wrap it around them.Where I live it's around 23 C in the morning and 15 C at night.

 

[Aphrael]

They don't have any heat source, like a brooder light or the radiant heat bulbs? They probably got chilled if that is the case. For the first week chicks need to have a place where they can warm up that is somewhere in the range of 95-100 degrees (fahrenheit). Also I'm pretty sure that millet alone is not a nutritionally balanced diet. Did you give them access to grit along with the millet? It won't be digestible for them without grit to grind it down. Chick starter is a much safer and easier way to start them out.

 

[cafarmgirl]

The box is placed indoors and next to the window in the morning and afternoon so that the chicks can get sunlight. I place this mattress that new born babies sleep on in the box, and on top of it I place a newspaper. I give them millet to eat. At night I place them in a sweater and wrap it around them.Where I live it's around 23 C in the morning and 15 C at night.

They need a heat source like a heat lamp and they need some good chick feed, available at a feed store. Millit will not support a chicks growth and they cannot digest it unless fed grit. Even then it is not a sufficient diet for chicks. Wrapping them in a sweater could easily suffocate them.

Bed your brooder box with shavings, paper towels even, don't use newspaper. It's to slippery for baby chicks and they can develop splayed legs. It's also cold and gets wet easily.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

They don't have any heat source, like a brooder light or the radiant heat bulbs? They probably got chilled if that is the case. For the first week chicks need to have a place where they can warm up that is somewhere in the range of 95-100 degrees (fahrenheit). Also I'm pretty sure that millet alone is not a nutritionally balanced diet. Did you give them access to grit along with the millet? It won't be digestible for them without grit to grind it down. Chick starter is a much safer and easier way to start them out.

X2

 

[goldfinches]

I'm concerned about your setup. A cardboard box can work, but do you have a heat lamp? What kind of containers are you using that a 14 day old chick can drown in? Put some marbles, shells, stones in it to prevent that in the future. Have you researched how to raise chicks? Don't get any more until you are sure you're prepared for them!

 

[M4Ahmed16]

I keep their heads out of the sweater,but their bodies inside.My last two chicks didn't huddle up together so I'm guessing they weren't cold. Is that correct? The container, well, it was about 2 inches deep. I don't think the chick drowned, she just fell in the container, got out and then passed on from the coldness of the water.

 

[Kilsharion]

I keep their heads out of the sweater,but their bodies inside.My last two chicks didn't huddle up together so I'm guessing they weren't cold. Is that correct? The container, well, it was about 2 inches deep. I don't think the chick drowned, she just fell in the container, got out and then passed on from the coldness of the water.

at 23*C/73*F - they are way too cold. They must be kept at much higher temperatures as tiny chicks (90-100*F/32.2-37.78*C). I'm assuming you bought them on impulse? Did you have anyone help you with your setup? Where did you get them? Wherever it was (hopefully a local store), go back and have them set you up properly before you try again. Do your homework by reading through the information provided in the Learning Centre. It is a spectacular resource that answers many of the questions new chick "parents" have. And, ask questions! People on this site love to help as much as possible. Additionally, you have gotten quite a bit of excellent information in this thread alone, such as:

• Your chicks need a heat source to keep them warm - temperatures should be kept stable at 32.2-37.78*C
• Your chicks should not be on bare newspaper - you will potentially damage them in such an environment. Instead, utilize something like the rubber-bumpy shelf lining for newer chicks or shavings and such for older chicks. Shavings can be found at any pet supply store that provides bedding for rabbits, ferrets, guinea pigs, etc
• Your chicks should not be put in a sweater for warmth - it doesn't work and it is more liable to suffocate them than help them
• Your chicks should be provided water that is in an appropriate container and has impediments to drowning, such as marbles, stones, etc - two inches of water is more than adequate to drown a chick
• Your chicks must be fed food that meets their nutrition requirements - millet on its own is not such a food
• Improper care of chicks will result in their death - which doesn't make anyone feel good
• Do not get more chicks that depend on you for their survival until have prepared for them by learning (re: asking more questions here, reading the forums, doing google searches, going to the library, etc) and setting up the area intended for them to brood

This also brings up the next cycle of their life, should they make it past the first couple of weeks and get old enough to move out of the brooder....

• Where are you planning on keeping them?
• What are you planning on feeding them?
• Do you know what they need to be healthy and productive?
• Just - in general - how are you planning to care and upkeep these animals in your charge?

Have a plan - get knowledgeable - get prepared - then pursue. It works out better for everyone/thing that way.

I'm so sorry for your loss - hopefully, it will be a great lesson learned and you will never have to experience such staggering losses again.

[[edited for clarity]]

 

[M4Ahmed16]

Thank you for your reply I'll try to implement on what everyone's said.

 

[M4Ahmed16]

Wasn't a local store, I bought them off a street vendor. But I'll go to a pet store and get the chicks what they need.