this chick (allegedly a maran) is 5 weeks old- not growing

[HannahinOly]

I have her in with some new babies because the others outgrew her by leaps and bounds and were coop ready.

has anyone else had a chick like this that grew to be a normal hen?

she also has a bulge above her wing, almost where it meets the wing. I found a thread about a chicken with a similar problem and it should hopefully go away on its own.

I'm just really concerned about her and I dont know what to do! She was small from the start. when she was a week old she got really lethargic and I handfed her for a few days and she bounced back.

 

[Kelsie2290]

I've never had much luck with chicks that are really tiny compared to hatch mates and just don't do well, they seem to crop up once in awhile, my guess is they usually have some congenital or genetic problem. You said she was sick when she was a week old, do you know what was wrong? Were any of the other chicks sick? You might want to post in the Emergencies / Diseases / Injuries and Cures since she really doesn't look well either, does she usually stand kind of hunched up like that?

 

[HannahinOly]

i will take some more photos of her in the morning for you to look at. none of the other chicks were ill, just her. she was super sleepy and not eating. after a couple of days of handfeeding she got more active.

she has gotten much more active since i started letting the chicks out in the yard for an hour or so everyday. she seems to really respond to the fresh air and seems more excited about foraging

 

[Kathrynmodra]

I have a similar problem with a little Araucana chick. The other hatch mates are over twice her size. She is small, skinny and sleeps a lot. But she still seems to make it first to the feed bowls. I was given a tip to give her extra treats so I give her crumbles softened with a yogurt once a day. Once she has had her share, the others can join in. The good news is that at nearly 8 weeks she is still going, and seems happy.

I'm not sure if your chick will ever catch up, like mine. But try given her some extra nice things.

Good luck!

 

[HannahinOly]

thanks!

im returning the roosters from the batch of chicks i got her with, and im seriously debating bringing her with me to show the the breeder. I just don't think its normal at all, whats happening with her.

after reading other forums, it seems like she has a general "failure the thrive" situation, and it seems like even the chickens who make it, dont live a full life.

im just feeling really sad about the whole situation!

i feed them yogurt a few days a week, she really likes it. i think i might try mashing up a boiled egg as well, and try to get her some more protein

 

[Kelsie2290]

Sorry about the chick, sometimes there is just nothing you can do that will really help. They do make feeds that are higher in protein, like game bird or turkey starter that you can get where ever you get your chicken food if you are looking for a higher protein food for her. I agree that at this point in time she is never going to catch up to her hatchmates and be "normal". Wouldn't hurt to take her with you to show the breeder, would be good to see first hand what you are talking about if nothing else if they haven't seen one like her.

 

[HannahinOly]

here are some more photos of her. i would say this is what she normally looks like... from day 1 to week 6. haha funny but not really!
















all the other chicks pick on her a lot, even the ones smaller than her.

 

[HannahinOly]

just updating this thread in case anyone every has similar problems. I regret hand feeding this girl and keeping her alive so long when it was clear she was not thriving. she died shortly after this post one day, just free ranging in the yard with no apparent cause of death.

 

[Kathrynmodra]

how sad. I'm sorry about your chick.

The same thing happened to my chick. She made it to 11 weeks despite the odds, then deteriorated within a matter of hours.

I guess nature always wins.

 

[HannahinOly]

Sorry about yours as well...

You just want all your baby chickens to be normal and healthy!