Slightly Lethargic Chick - Should I be Concerned?

[NatJ]

If it was my chick, I would be inclined to give her free-choice access to: grit, chick starter, plain water (all in separate dishes.) Since massaging her crop seems to make her feel better, I would continue with that as well.

If you've been withholding chick starter, and she's getting weak, I would worry that she's just plain not getting enough to eat!

You say she likes to eat chick starter and grit, and she is pooping. So I wonder if she'll get better faster if you just leave her to it, and quit giving her a bunch of odd things.

(I am not a vet, nor an expert, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.)

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Here is Junie's latest poop. The first picture I included a penny so you can see the size. The second picture is after I wiped it up. She has had orangish stringy/snotty stuff in her poop today, but I read somewhere that that isn't something to be too concerned over with chicks.

Her crop swelled up again after she ate some of her chick starter. I added some ACV to her water dispenser and have been working the gas build-up out of her crop. She's still lethargic and she's been scratching at her ears/ear patches after I get the gas out (maybe the the gas build up is irritating her ears or throat?).

I'm still leaning on the idea that she has sour crop - can't find any other disorder in chicks/chickens that has symptoms of bloating in the crop (and it makes sense that a yeast infection would cause fermentation in there).

I can just keep adding ACV to her water instead of administering the Monistat, but I'm really concerned that the bubbly crop hasn't improved over the past few days. I just managed to get about .25 mL of hard-boiled egg yolk blended with olive oil into her (hoping to give her a bit of a nutrition boost and maybe, if there is a blockage, the olive oil can help move things along).

Anyway, sorry for the bombardment of questions/feedback. I just want to make sure I'm doing everything I can to help her.

- Jenna

I would get some Corid and start treatment asap.
If the crop is sour, don't massage.
When are you checking her crop? Is she sleeping all night (in the dark) or is she under a heat lamp and eating 24/7?

 

[CalBickieMomma]

Hello everyone and thank you so much for the feedback.

Junie seems to be doing better this morning. She is up and about, pecking at food and eating some (I put a little dish in her brooder (our laundry sink) yesterday, as well as a little dish with grit, so she has free access. She has ACV and electrolytes in her water and yesterday evening I was able to get about .25 ml of Nutri Drench and then about .25 ml of olive oil (to help if there is a blockage) into her. She sleeps under a heat lamp and I keep it on at all times at a temperature around 92 degrees. I check on her a lot to make sure she's doing okay and mostly to make sure the temperature doesn't get too cold or too warm for her.

This morning, her crop was a little squishy, but not bloated (and I didn't massage it during the two times I got up at night to check on her). I gave her another .25 ml of Nutri Drench this morning and may do so again later today, just to make sure she is getting enough nutrients. She is eating a little on her own, and still sleepy (but I'm assuming it's because she's been through such an ordeal the past few days and hopefully she'll start eating more as she starts regaining her strength).

She was crying out for me and her siblings this morning and would try to jump out of the sink and would jump onto my hand and arm when I would go over to check on her. Right now she's snoozing on my lap in her hot pocket (basically a fleece-lined pillow case I made for when I'm raising chicks to keep them warm when they're with me).

The Corid should be getting here Sunday, so hopefully she continues to improve. And a quick question about the Corid: If she doesn't have coccidiosis, is it still safe to treat her for it? I'm not 100% sure she has that, but if there are no negative side effects, I'll go ahead and mix the Corid in her water just in case she does have coccidiosis. Just don't want to make her worse if she doesn't actually have it.

Thank you sooooo, sooooo much for all the feedback and your support. I'm really hoping she's on the mend and she'll be okay. She's such a sweet little nugget .

- Jenna

P.S. I'm attaching a few pictures. She's been very cuddly of late. Thank goodness I have long hair for her to snuggle in.

 

[CalBickieMomma]

If it was my chick, I would be inclined to give her free-choice access to: grit, chick starter, plain water (all in separate dishes.) Since massaging her crop seems to make her feel better, I would continue with that as well.

If you've been withholding chick starter, and she's getting weak, I would worry that she's just plain not getting enough to eat!

You say she likes to eat chick starter and grit, and she is pooping. So I wonder if she'll get better faster if you just leave her to it, and quit giving her a bunch of odd things.

(I am not a vet, nor an expert, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.)

Thanks for your input! And I think you're on the right track. She has free access to grit and her chick starter now, and it doesn't seem to be making things worse. I was just so worried about her having sour crop and thinking solid food might make it worse. Anyway, hopefully she's on the mend now <3.

- Jenna

 

[bluemtnwmn]

It is my understanding that treating for Coccidiosis with Corid is not harmful even if they don't have it. I got this chart off of this site. Coccidiosis is very likely in chicks between the ages of 3-5 weeks so I gave mine the preventative dose from weeks 3-6. I couldn't tell any difference in them. No one got sick!

 

[CalBickieMomma]

It is my understanding that treating for Coccidiosis with Corid is not harmful even if they don't have it. I got this chart off of this site. Coccidiosis is very likely in chicks between the ages of 3-5 weeks so I gave mine the preventative dose from weeks 3-6. I couldn't tell any difference in them. No one got sick!View attachment 2167015

Thank you for this! I might just treat all the Littles, just to be safe. On a positive note, my little June Bug is doing much better. Still groggy/lethargic, but she’s been eating and up moving around, and tonight, her crop felt more firm (as if it was half full of chick starter instead of full of gas). Maybe the olive oil I gave her helped, or whatever was causing the problem worked itself out. Either way, I’m very grateful and hoping she’s on her way to getting healthy once again.

 

[CalBickieMomma]

June Bug update!

So my little fluff bug is eating, drinking, and pooping more (and it looks pretty normal), but she’s still pretty sluggish and sickly looking. For those of you seasoned in tending sick Littles, is this pretty normal? All she wants to do when I pick her up is cuddle and snooze (she’s making the cuddle time cheeps a lot and trying to wiggle her way under my neck).

Should I try to get her brooder closer to 95 instead of 90? She’s also smaller than her siblings, but I’m assuming that‘s because she wasn’t taking in as much food As the rest for a while. Hoping as time goes on she’ll gain more weight and snap out of the lethargy.

Thanks!

 

[NatJ]

Should I try to get her brooder closer to 95 instead of 90?

Is her brooder all the same temperature?
Since she's healthy enough to move around, it's best if one part is too hot and another part is too cold, so she can find a comfortable spot in between. If she sits right in the warmest spot, definitely make it a bit warmer yet. (And if she sits in the coolest spot, of course you would try to make it even cooler.)

 

[CalBickieMomma]

Is her brooder all the same temperature?
Since she's healthy enough to move around, it's best if one part is too hot and another part is too cold, so she can find a comfortable spot in between. If she sits right in the warmest spot, definitely make it a bit warmer yet. (And if she sits in the coolest spot, of course you would try to make it even cooler.)

I’ve kept the heat lamp to one side because she’s in a laundry sink that’s about 16’ x 18’. I’ve got a thermometer in there to keep an eye on the temperature, and one side is warmer. I think she wanted it warmer because now she’s a bit in the middle.

I’m just paranoid because she had her gassy crop problem for so long, then that went away, and now her crop is full of chick starter (more firm) and has been so all day (so I can‘t tell if she’s processing the food and just keeps eating, or if there is a blockage which caused the problem to begin with and it’s just going to start all over again ).

On the plus side, she’s pooping. It’s just this prolonged lethargy that has me a tiny bit worried (but maybe it’s normal for her to be like this for a few days after her ordeal OR I’ve spoiled her by holding and loving on her so much of late and she’s working me ).

Anyway, I’ve got olive oil on hand to give to her in case it looks like things aren‘t moving along and I have a small postal scale I’m going to use to weigh her every day to see if she’s gaining weight.

Again, thanks for all the help! Hopefully by the end of this, and hopefully Junie continues to improve, I’ll be an expert in this particular field of chick problems .

- Jenna

 

[bluemtnwmn]

Hopefully by the end of this, and hopefully Junie continues to improve, I’ll be an expert in this particular field of chick problems .

I know what you're saying, I feel like the pasty butt expert! I spent a whole night thinking I was going to have to cull my little with the worst case. I finally got him through it and he's still kicking at almost 7 weeks. He's even mostly caught up on growth!
Good luck with your Junie! Thank you for the updates.