PLEASE help!! 9 weeks old chick not walking

[sararoni]

The scale just arrived. She weights 571g. I weighted one of her sisters and it was 1100g.
She is almost half.
She looks much smaller too.
How bad is this?
She eats by herself now. I give her 21% grower crumbles.

 

[casportpony]

Don't worry too much about what she weighs now. Yes, she's way below where she should be, but there is nothing you can do about it now. Pick one chick that's her age, start to weigh them daily or every few days and use that chick to help you determine if she's gaining enough weight. For example, if the chick you choose weighs 1000 grams today, then 1100 grams in two days from now, that's a gain of 10%, so ideally your smaller one would also gain 10% (57.1 grams) and weigh ~628 grams. Make sense? Moving forward, any loss or lack of gain should concern you.

-Kathy

 

[enola]

I think you should go ahead and christen her Joy. After all, she deserves a name. She is a fighter!

 

[sararoni]

Don't worry too much about what she weighs now. Yes, she's way below where she should be, but there is nothing you can do about it now. Pick one chick that's her age, start to weigh them daily or every few days and use that chick to help you determine if she's gaining enough weight. For example, if the chick you choose weighs 1000 grams today, then 1100 grams in two days from now, that's a gain of 10%, so ideally your smaller one would also gain 10% (57.1 grams) and weigh ~628 grams. Make sense? Moving forward, any loss or lack of gain should concern you.

-Kathy

Phew Kathy. I was afraid you will advise to tube feed her 2-3 times a day. That was really scary and frustrating to do. I was terrified I will chock her every time.
I will give her healthy treats to encourage her to eat more and hopefully she will get stronger and able to walk

 

[casportpony]

No need to tube if she's gaining the same percentage of weight as the other chicks. If she isn't, you might want to think about her overall quality of life.

-Kathy

 

[Fancychooklady]

I would still be giving her scrambled egg with a spoon of yoghurt stirred through. The egg is very nutritious and the yoghurt will keep her probiotics up.

 

[sararoni]

The more I read and observe her the more I think this chick has rickets.
One leg seems to have improved a little.
Should I give her some calcium? I can crush some tums on her feed or water.
I don't know what to give for phosphorus and vitamin D3.
If indeed it is rickets what do you think are the chances for her to get better after 4 weeks of being sick?
The vitamins & electrolytes plus by Agrilabs that I am giving her doesn't have calcium listed but it does have D3 and phosphorus. I don't know if enough of them though

 

[Fancychooklady]

It's more a matter of the calcium to phosphorus ratio. A well balanced game bird finisher pellet or similar is scientifically formulated to specifically address these ratios .Calcium carbonate ( ground oyster shell ) should always be on free take for layers and sunshine is the best way to get vit D although a little cod liver oil added to the ration will supply some D3.
Birds fed on a high grain diet are more likely to have excessive phosphorous levels.
http://hoeggerfarmyard.com/calcium-the-key-to-beautiful-eggs-and-healthy-hens/

 

[rbaker0345]

Honestly, there are so many deficiencies that can cause this, D3, riboflavin, choline, thiamin etc. You might want to contact your state vet and she what he or she recommends. Send them pics of her spinal profile (from the side) and of her hocks from the outside and rear angles. That might help determine what is wrong, but other than that, I would make sure she keeps gaining weight at a consistent rate and that she is getting an absolutely balanced diet. If a deficiency is involved it might take months to reverse or it might not reverse at all, especially if it caused tibial malformation or a slipped tendon. But I would definitely give it more time and try to keep her in the most correct position possible.

 

[sararoni]

I will just keep giving the multivitamin then and hope her body picks up what it is lacking.
I have been feeding her with extra care and today she was 624 g,53 g more than 2 days ago.
Tomorrow I will weight her again together with one of her sisters to compare like Kathy advised.