Sick chick

[karint]

please hell something is wrong with one of my chicks this morning she is hanging her head really bad. When I lick her up she has energy to squirm but her head stays down. But she is generally just sitting in the corner hanging her head. She has drank water this morning.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Looks like wry neck, a vitamin deficit.

What are you feeding including treats and supplements?

 

[karint]

No treats yet cause I assumed they were to young. I’m just feeding the chick starter from the feed store. Should I also be supplementing with something?

 

[Eggcessive]

I agree the chick has wry neck (crook neck, torticolis.) In chicks it can be due to vitamin E or B1 thiamine deficiency, a genetic problem, or a head injury. I would give some chick vitamins with thiamine, and add 400 IU of vitamin E daily, and give to her in food. Help her to eat and drink. Sometimes making a small amount of wet feed plus a little cooked egg mixed together is easy to feed.

 

[karint]

Thanks so much. I’ll get started right away and hopefully I can save her. Thanks for the help!

 

[Eggcessive]

You’re welcome. It can take days or weeks sometimes to see improvement, and sometimes it doesn’t. But I hope that she gets better soon. Be sure to give just a little cooked egg for some selenium, a mineral that helps as well.

 

[karint]

I’m so glad you said it could take weeks cause I was expecting to see results in the next day or two. This way I won’t worry about her as much. I can’t seem to get her to eat but will try eggs. Thanks

 

[Eggcessive]

Here are a couple of videos showing chickens with wry neck being helped to eat:

 

[karint]

Here are a couple of videos showing chickens with wry neck being helped to eat:

Thanks that first video was very helpful

 

[karint]

For anyone reading this thread later a few things I’ve learned today which have been extremely helpful is that you need to be very patient when feeding it can easily take more then ten minutes and it is normal for the chick to keep falling asleep. Also there isn’t a quick remedy it can take a couple weeks for the chick to be better.
Lastly I would highly recommend you watch the first video as there were so many useful pointers such as wrapping the chick up and how to help it feed.