Tricky Chick Situation

[starforever61]

7 weeks ago, we got 2 white rock chicks. They were kept in a cardboard box brooder and the lamp was raised a tad higher every week or so. Then by using an old farmer's trick, we figured out that one of them was a male, and went to return him. We couldn't keep just one because she got so lonely, so we got 1 more same breed and age, but then my little brother and cousin wanted new hatchlings. So of course, we got them. The brooder was changed into an old guinea pig cage and the sides are only wire. We put the lamp all the way back to the beginning for the young 'uns. The big 'uns just kind of stayed on the outside and adjusted. After a week of having these new chicks, one looked sickly and died the next day. Then another one looked sickly and died the next day. The big 'uns are ready to go join the coop with the big big 'uns. There is only one little 'un left. Are they sick and should we take them all back? The big ones don't seem sick, just the newer big one lays down more often. The little 'un will be lonely if we put the big 'uns in the coop. What should we do?

 

[starforever61]

By the way, they aren't vaccinated for anything.

 

[starforever61]

Please someone help

I really don't want this last one to die

Is there ANYTHING worth trying? Anything at all??

 

[Kedreeva]

You may want to go to the first stickied post in this forum section and answer those questions a little better, especially what sort of bedding and what sort of food and water and such. What do you mean by 'looked sickly'? You have to describe the symptoms before anyone can really suggest anything. Wings droopy? head droopy? Gunk in eyes/nose/mouth? Panting? Thin? Weird crop? There's a million things "looks sickly" can mean

 

[starforever61]

She just lay down and moved only a little bit. She got right in the middle of the big chicks to stay warm even though the brooder is pretty hot already.

 

[starforever61]

But also they could have suffocated. What happened was that we bought older chicks and birds that were a few days old and put them together. When the little guys got cold, they just snuggled into the older birds' wings. When their head doesn't stick out, they probably don't breathe that much. I just checked on them and the little guy's head was sticking out and she's alive!!!

I just don't want her to die anytime soon.

But that theory doesn't explain why they act so slow and pained the night before they die... any words of wisdom?

 

[Dorte]

So sorry about your little ones.

I do not have enough experience even to have qualified guesses on this one. I lost one chicken a few days after we brought them home. She was sick for a day and just got weaker and weaker. That was hard enough, must be terrible to see them dying one after the other.

Are there any other symptoms you can think of that may help the diagnosis? Bloody poop for example? What are you feeding them?

 

[starforever61]

She died

 

[77horses]

So sorry about your chick...

Wish I could have helped.