I have bought a rooster at an auction 4 weeks ago, among other roosters and hens. This guy was the smallest, he looked to be about 12 weeks size.
He has been picked on by others and he was very cautious and jumpy and nervous but I never saw injuries. He found his way into the separate area that I made for 2 other birds that were getting used to being in the coop as they just moved out of the kitchen recently.
These 3 birds were getting along fine, even though I think my 2 birds are also roosters. One I am sure of now. I let this little guy stay in there since I thought he should still have been on the grower feed. A few weeks passed and we noticed that he was not growing while the other two did. He was hiding in the coop too and slept with the teens in a separate area at night. He did have normal behaviour sometimes pecking the other little guys or standing up to a challenge from the older rooster.
On thursday he was still running from the hens and he ran behind me for protection.
On friday I noticed that he was just standing there when I went in to feed and when I touched his back he did not jump away. He still picked up food from the ground. In the evening he found his way into the coop to the same spot he always slept on.
On saturday morning he went into the yard into the school area and he just stood on a rock with head pulled in. I picked him up to check for mites since that is what I have been dealing with on a few other hens.
When I held this little guy, I felt his crop completely empty. He is bone and skin. His drum sticks are skinny. I did not find any injuries on his skin but feathers are missing from the cuticles. I thought he was starving so I took him to the grass and gave him food and water and let him
rest and recover from stress. Over the day he did not move, eat or drink, so in the afternoon I started to give him water. He just laid on my lap and didn't move. When I put him on the grass he sat down. Over a few hours in the afternoon he became more lethargic and stopped standing. He laid on his side. His feet curled. Someone recommended hot pepper in the water in case of coccidiosis, which I gave. I pushed water with a syringe hourly about 15-20ml since I didn't think he was drinking.
He became very weak very quickly. I thought he would be dead by the evening. But he is still breathing and sleeping in a drawer in the house and his neck is curled under. His toes are curled and won't move if I touch them. His feathers are shiny, the only thing that is apparent is that he is very skinny and weak and lethargic. No blood or injury or mites anywhere.
If he survives the night, what can I give him to help?
I don't have any medication yet because I could not find a store where I can buy it but I will be visiting a store in the morning if they are open on Sunday and I will pick up some meds for worms and coccidiosis. We really want him to recover and grow. I think he would be gorgeous when ge grows up to adult size. He is purple and blue.
This picture was taken in the afternoon when we put him on the grass in the sun.
This picture is now in the middle of the night. He moved his head to the back now. But none of these positions are normal.
He opened his eyes to see what I was doing but he did not move.
He has been picked on by others and he was very cautious and jumpy and nervous but I never saw injuries. He found his way into the separate area that I made for 2 other birds that were getting used to being in the coop as they just moved out of the kitchen recently.
These 3 birds were getting along fine, even though I think my 2 birds are also roosters. One I am sure of now. I let this little guy stay in there since I thought he should still have been on the grower feed. A few weeks passed and we noticed that he was not growing while the other two did. He was hiding in the coop too and slept with the teens in a separate area at night. He did have normal behaviour sometimes pecking the other little guys or standing up to a challenge from the older rooster.
On thursday he was still running from the hens and he ran behind me for protection.
On friday I noticed that he was just standing there when I went in to feed and when I touched his back he did not jump away. He still picked up food from the ground. In the evening he found his way into the coop to the same spot he always slept on.
On saturday morning he went into the yard into the school area and he just stood on a rock with head pulled in. I picked him up to check for mites since that is what I have been dealing with on a few other hens.
When I held this little guy, I felt his crop completely empty. He is bone and skin. His drum sticks are skinny. I did not find any injuries on his skin but feathers are missing from the cuticles. I thought he was starving so I took him to the grass and gave him food and water and let him
rest and recover from stress. Over the day he did not move, eat or drink, so in the afternoon I started to give him water. He just laid on my lap and didn't move. When I put him on the grass he sat down. Over a few hours in the afternoon he became more lethargic and stopped standing. He laid on his side. His feet curled. Someone recommended hot pepper in the water in case of coccidiosis, which I gave. I pushed water with a syringe hourly about 15-20ml since I didn't think he was drinking.
He became very weak very quickly. I thought he would be dead by the evening. But he is still breathing and sleeping in a drawer in the house and his neck is curled under. His toes are curled and won't move if I touch them. His feathers are shiny, the only thing that is apparent is that he is very skinny and weak and lethargic. No blood or injury or mites anywhere.
If he survives the night, what can I give him to help?
I don't have any medication yet because I could not find a store where I can buy it but I will be visiting a store in the morning if they are open on Sunday and I will pick up some meds for worms and coccidiosis. We really want him to recover and grow. I think he would be gorgeous when ge grows up to adult size. He is purple and blue.
This picture was taken in the afternoon when we put him on the grass in the sun.
This picture is now in the middle of the night. He moved his head to the back now. But none of these positions are normal.
He opened his eyes to see what I was doing but he did not move.
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