Very Skinny and lethargic 7 week old Orpington

[nicosturla]

Hello there!

I have three chickens, almost 7 weeks old (2 blue laced red wyandotte and 1 Lavender Orpington). They have been living outside in their coop for a couple days now and I am worried about the Orpington. She is much smaller and less fully feathered than the other two, she seems to always be stressed and anxious and will squawk nonstop when it gets dark and sometimes during the day. She chooses to spend majority of her time alone laying down inside the coop despite the hot temperatures. I think she has parrot beak where her upper beak is much longer and bends down over her bottom beak. I have trimmed down the non tissue part of her beak but the tissue goes past her bottom beak. She seems to be having a very difficult time eating because her upper beak stops her from being able to peck at the food. She is still eating some grass however is eating and drinking far less then the other 2. I have been feeding them 18% protein medicated chick feed since they’ve arrived and now added some of the Sav-a-Chick electrolytes to their water but she doesn’t seem to want to drink even when I bring the water to her. Could she be sick? and what should I do next?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Can you share some pictures? She may just be a runt. Are you sure it's an Orpington?

 

[nicosturla]

Can you share some pictures? She may just be a runt. Are you sure mitt an Orpington?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

You might want to trim the end of the break a bit. Having it overgrown can interfere with eating. They usually wear them down pecking around on the ground. You may need to keep an eye on it and trim as necessary.

 

[SourRoses]

I have trimmed down the non tissue part of her beak but the tissue goes past her bottom beak. She seems to be having a very difficult time eating because her upper beak stops her from being able to peck at the food.

I was just reading this earlier - Sophisticated Fowl - which explains...

Fowl possess a good tactile sense, particularly in their beak, which they use to manipulate items (see references in [7]). Beak trimming, used to avoid feather pecking, is common practice in the poultry industry [37]. However, as the beak contains numerous nerve endings, this is likely both painful and stressful [37]. This has led some countries to implement bans on beak trimming. This is an example of how awareness of the sensory system of chickens is used with the aim to improve their welfare.

Fowl may possess magnetoreception as well. Their beaks contain structures (iron-containing sensory dendrites) similar to those found in homing pigeons [38] (a species known to detect and navigate by magnetic fields [39]). Beak trimming decreased the ability of chicks to find hidden food using a magnetic stimulus [38], indicating that these structures are involved in magnetoreception. Fowl also appear to use a magnetic compass, this may help them to orientate within their home-range, allowing fast and efficient movement between important sites (e.g., foraging and roosting sites [40]).

It may be that some nerve endings are now exposed which causes eating to be painful.