Uh oh, poor baby...any ideas?

[SimplyForties]

Last evening I was doing my usual round of pasty butt cleaning. When I finished with one of my little 4 day old Brahma banties and put her back in the brooder, she flopped around like she couldn't walk for a few seconds and then fell hard asleep. She took the longest to clean up and certainly complained the most but I was as gentle with her as with the rest of them. Anyway, she never really got moving again all evening and this morning she was still in the same position where I left her. When I picked her up she kept her legs tight up against herself. I can't figure out what happened to her. I put her in my recently vacated chicken jail (now infirmary), dipped her beak in the water a few times and then put a little chick starter down in front of her, which she quickly ate. I'm not sure what else to do with her.

I hate to just stand by and watch her die but if she can't walk I can't imagine any other outcome for her. Any ideas?

 

[Mrs.Puff]

Okay, so here's a question... Why do you have "rounds" of pasty butt cleaning? Are they constantly getting pasty butt? Usually this is caused by pine wood shavings used as litter, and they eat little bits of it, and the pine pitch clogs up the guts. Are you using pine shavings?

 

[SimplyForties]

When I clean the brooder, morning and night, I check everybody and clean those who need cleaning. My chicks are on Carefresh, which is a pulp paper bedding, covered by puppy pads. I have a couple of chicks who have a tendancy to get pasty butts. I am using ground oatmeal and started putting acv in their water yesterday. They were born Sunday so hopefully we'll be past the pasty butt stage soon.

Any ideas about my little patient?

 

[Mrs.Puff]

I have never actually cared for chicks myself-- I always have a hen to do that. Sounds like you know what you're doing.... hmmmm. Maybe it has caught a little cold or something. I guess just let her be. I really don't know.

 

[noitulover]

not sure what it is... maybe some electrolytes in the water to perk her up a bit?

keep us updated! hope she gets better!

 

[crazycluck]

I got my chicks from Ideal on the 14th of May and I also had to clean the little pastey butts for about 6 days . All my chick were doing great until Sunday morning when I got up one of my brahma chicks seemed to be in the same spot she was the night before. When I picked her up she didn't move so I tried to give her yogurt and scrambled egg and electrolights nothing seemed to help. All day I tried to help her but no luck! She died at about 4:00.

After hours of tears my 16 year old daughter came in and told me she was playing with the chick the night before and the chick flew out of her hands and landed really hard on the ground!!

So ask around your house if you have children maybe some one knows something and is afraid to tell. good luck!

 

[kargo]

One of my little babies is not moving much, either. She's separated, too, and won't eat or drink. She looks shaggy and really sick. Perhaps our chicks have the same thing/

 

[SimplyForties]

Thanks crazycluck but there's only me and my pug around here. He's afraid of the chicks so I don't think he did it, plus he's pretty short to get into my big appliance box brooder

. I've got an egg boiling and am going to give her some hard boiled egg yolk and see if that helps at all. Funny that you had this problem with the same breed that I'm having a problem with.

I chose this breed specifically because they are reputed to be so docile and a very good pet chicken. The infirmary where this poor baby is currently residing was the jail cell of one of my other brahmas, who was a ferocious eye pecker. These brahmas are the only chicks I'm having any trouble with.

Poor baby, I don't see a good end result

 

[below_gravity]

I also have chicks from Ideal and have one out of eighteen that had it really bad yesterday. I cleaned it off and she took a poo about a inch high. I rubbed some olive oil in her butt and put her back. She ate some of the oil off of her butt and then proceeded to go under the heat lamp and lay there for a hour or and was pretty sluggish. She more seemed ok today-ran when i tried to pick her up instead of standing there so I hope she is still better when I get home. Have you put oil on the ones with the problem? I wonder if the oil helps the "pasties" come through as well as not stick!

 

[crazycluck]