Problem with baby chicks... Please help

That's called pasty butt and it can quickly become fatal to your chicks. Dried poop blocks the vent and they can't poop anymore. So you'll have to take them over to the sink, wet the area with warm water, soak and soften it, and get that off. You may have to gently pick through it with a toothpick if it's packed very hard. Just keep washing their little butts with that water and working at it until it's gone.

After you get it off, dry it gently and then dab either vaseline, olive or coconut oil to the area to keep more poop from sticking again. You may have to repeat this treatment a time or two, and do watch your other chicks for the same thing. The consensus seems to be that brooders that are too warm could be a cause. Others feed their chicks food softened into a mash with water to try to prevent it. Whatever the cause, you are right to be concerned and need to act quickly!

Good luck!

 

Pasty Butt is something that you'll want to check for every day until the chickens are grown. It's a common ailment that can be deadly. It prevents them from pooping and, if they get too backed up, they will die! You want to wash it off with warm water and a cloth or paper towel. If it's been a while, when you unclog the blockage they will poop A LOT when it's cleared. You'll be washing their rump and suddenly a day's worth of poop will come out of them! It's a very common ailment and there's not a lot that you can do to prevent it. You just need to keep watching them and washing it off when it happens.