Sick CX chic

[Hummingbird Hollow]

I just did my morning check and feeding of my 9, 4 week old CX chicks. One does not look so good. It stayed all droopy under the heat lamp when I put down fresh food and water. When I picked it up, it was very quiet in my hands. I can't see any thing visually wrong with it but did note that its legs seem much pinker than its flock mates. Any ideas? I dipped its beak in water that I had fortified with some ACV and molasses and put it right by the Fermented Feed plate. It took a little drink and about two lethargic pecks at the feed but that was it.

I guess I should post this to the injury and illness page, but thought since it was a CX, perhaps I'd have more luck here. So far, I lost one chick last week (9 days ago)while my mom was chicken sitting for me while we were gone for Spring Break. She found it dead in the morning when she came to feed and water them but didn't notice anything wrong before then.

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

Back home from work and chick is still around but droopy. I got it to drink more water and then put it back under the heat lamp. Any ideas? Should I cross post this elsewhere?

 

[AgroUrica]

All things considered, heat is usually a good thing for a sickly bird unless it's excessively hot otherwise. Most folks would cull a sickly meat bird though I understand your desires to save it. I had a couple of sickly birds in my first group of 300 and managed to nurse them back to health (removed from the others) and eventually butchered one of them. The other has a ways to go yet.

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

Just culled the chick. It was going to die anyway it seemed to me. I'd still be interested in ideas on what would take a 4 week old CX chick though since I have more that same age.

 

[AgroUrica]

Just culled the chick. It was going to die anyway it seemed to me. I'd still be interested in ideas on what would take a 4 week old CX chick though since I have more that same age.

There are so many bugs that can affect these birds. A good friend of mine back in the States has told me to stop trying to nurse sick meat-bird chicks. She says I'll thank her one day because even if a chick seems to recover, it can be a carrier for some infectious disease that can wipe out a bunch of birds in short order. I know she's right.

Perhaps do a google search on chick afflictions and you'll be able to figure out via the symptoms what this one had.

Good luck.

 

[journey11]

It may have just been a leg problem and the bird didn't want to move to eat/drink. Usually when I lose one at that age, that is the case, especially if it's the only one looking droopy. Sorry about your chick! I always dread culling, but I hate watching them suffer. The CX rarely recover and if they do, they'll not be as big as the others.