Two Sick Chicks

[Momtofive86]

Good morning all...
I woke up this morning and one of my little Orpingtons had passed away. She seemed a little slow yesterday but I was not too alarmed. This morning one of my Easter Egger's is exhibiting similar behavior. They are almost 4 weeks old. We live in Arizona, have had a heat lamp on and yesterday they were all away from the heat lamp. We do keep the house about 78 during the day. The Easter Egger is chirping loudly and seems strong as she is kicking her legs when I pick her up....I do not feel anything unusual with her crop. Could she have gotten overheated? I am not sure what to do but I am trying not to panic. There are 14 in all and the rest are very active, plenty of food and water and a large area so no one is cramped. Help!

 

[rayrose]

You probably don't need the heat lamp.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry about your chick.

If they are avoiding the lamp, then turn it off and see how they do. At 4weeks, they are probably fine at 78F inside the house.

Can you get some photos of the chick and her poop? I would first work on hydrating her and see if she perks up.

Do you have their outdoor space ready? 14 chicks inside can be quite crowded unless you have them in a very large space. They may be ready to go outside and get acclimated.

 

[Momtofive86]

You probably don't need the heat lamp.

That's what we are thinking. Also though, I just gave the chick some pedialite and sugar water. She drank a little bit. What I did hear though as I was holding her and as I set her back down, she sounds like she is wheezing. Could it be something respiratory?? Thanks for any advice.

 

[Momtofive86]

I'm sorry about your chick.

If they are avoiding the lamp, then turn it off and see how they do. At 4weeks, they are probably fine at 78F inside the house.

Can you get some photos of the chick and her poop? I would first work on hydrating her and see if she perks up.

Do you have their outdoor space ready? 14 chicks inside can be quite crowded unless you have them in a very large space. They may be ready to go outside and get acclimated.

They are in a large space but we will be putting them out soon. I will see if I can post a pic. I looked at her poop and it was brown, not runny.

 

[Momtofive86]

 

[Momtofive86]

This is my girl. I hope I did this correctly. As I stated above I am giving her Pedialite and sugar water. I can hear her wheezing a bit. We have separated her from the rest of the girls but she just sits.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Isn't she cute!

Have you treated for Coccidiosis?

The wheezing is concerning, how much ventilation do they have?

 

[Momtofive86]

Okay. I realized that the ‘wheezing’ was actually me getting Pedialite up her nose when I was feeding her with a dropper. She stopped once I figured that out.

 

[LaFleche]

Your chicks might be suffering from Vitamin D3 deficiency. At 4 weeks old and living inside, have they already been exposed to natural sunlight? Or did you supplement their water with containing additives vitamin D?

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6269271/