Sick week old chick,what now?

[gitlost80]

Hi all. One of my week old chicks is eating,drinking and going potty,and has a clean butt, but it is weaker than the others and is shaking its head alot , wiping its bill on the ground and holds its mouth open when i pick it up. It doesnt seem to have much energy either.It sleeps way more than the others. The whole time it tries to sleep it keeps moving his head(like he doesnt want it to touch the ground).Its acting like its trying to keep from spitting something up,like a constant water drinking movement. What can I do?when hes awake he seems ok, but at night I wonder if its suffering...Help please!Hes been doing it since I got him.

 

[tamelroy]

you can try giving Enfamil Poly-Vi-Sol without iron, sometimes that works wonders in chicks.

 

[exsia]

please let me know if enfamil works for ya. I have this same issue all the time! I matter what i've tried, i just end up losing the little guys.

 

[gitlost80]

I only have regular formula. Will that work?

 

[dot n'dave]

I would look into "wry neck". I just had a chick that developed it at about 4 weeks. She couldn't lift her head. Slept all the time. Here's the thread of my situation. https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=307249
I would isolate it from the others so it doesn't get trampled.
If you decide to, make sure you get the poly-vi-sol WITHOUT iron. I found it at CVS.
Please don't let the outcome we had discourage you, some chicks can live with it I've heard. I made the decision on no improvement and poor future quality of life.

Also here are some pics of a collar I made out of a toilet paper tube. I cut it to size and 1 or 1.5 inches in width, and about 2 to 2.5 inches in length. Snip the ends every 1/8" or so on the long sides to make it flare out when you roll it back for comfort. The wrap it around the neck carefully and secure it with masking tape. Enough so there's a little room for the neck to breath and eat. When I did this I noticed the chick standing more and attempting to eat a bit more. It took me a few tries for a good fit, but I eventually got it to fit so she couldn't shake it off.

Good luck.

 

[tamelroy]

Quote:
Its the vitamin drop and it has to be without iron, look into the wry neck too! I am not to sure what is wrong with yours but I know those vitamins come in handy for a pick me up for the birds.

 

[dot n'dave]

Yeah, keep the vitamins handy. My wife made a first aid kit for our animals, and we keep it in there.