thin chicks, please please help

[lovelychicken]

I posted before on this and didnt get responses but one. They are 6-7 weeks old, not under heat anymore, outside in coop at night, run during day. temps at day are 60-70 and at night 55-60. sleeping on sand, they wont perch yet, in coop. they eat purina frow and start medicated and little scraps. First the BA feet thin, the underside bone and meat around it. Now the EE feel thin. Feels like they are loosing weight. The EE are usually very robust, heftier. They seem healthy though, they eat/drink/poop normal. So searching I can find nothing. I see no bugs on them. Do they need something else to eat that helps with weight?...or is something wrong? Sorry, I am new to actually owning chickens. Taken care of family/friends but never raised them myself. Any help would be appreciated much.

 

[NotTheMomma]

It's typical to feel their breast bone at that age. They are just starting to develop good muscles. If their crop is full at bedtime, and empty in the morning, then they are getting enough to eat.

If you're really worried, you could take some of their poop into a vet and see if they will test for worms for you. Sometimes worms will keep them from gaining weight.

To get them to roost, start placing a few on the roosts. Won't take long for the others to jump or fly up because the others are up there. How high are the roosts? Can they get on them by themselves?

My suggestion? Step back, take a deep breath, stop worrying, and enjoy your chickens!!!

 

[janinepeters]

You might post some photos so we can see what you mean by thin.

 

[damselfish]

If their poops are normal, as the above posters said, you probably just have teenage chickens.

My only other thought is to make sure that there's enough space at the feeder for everyone to eat without too much competition. I know we had to scramble to get a bigger feeder when our first batch of chickens suddenly got too big to crowd around the baby-size feeder. Also make sure that feed is always available.

Good luck and try not to worry too much.