Whats happening to my 2 week old buff orpington baby chick

[NatJ]

I could only feed it water these past two days, its eaten a little bit of egg yolk and a little bit of watery food.

Chick starter is probably the best thing for it right now.

Watery was a good idea, if that's the only way to get it into the chick.

I would leave a dish of dry chick starter available to the chick too, in hopes that it will start eating for itself. (And a dish of water, of course.)

Sometimes chickens like their food as a thick mush (wet, but not really runny), so that's another way you could try it.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

My question is why you aren’t feeding them chick feed.

 

[somebody]

My question is why you aren’t feeding them chick feed.

Well I did, I just mixed it with water. If you're also wondering why I also fed them egg yolk, its just because I read that egg yolk was good for lethargic chickens.

 

[Baumshell28]

I’ve read the posts & still can’t really tell if this chick is alone or has other chickadee friends...? One of the things I’ve learned on this site is that chickens are far from solitary animals, they are flock animals and even having just one other chicken to make a “flock” can have a very surprising effect on their ability to thrive. Also, I wonder about the heat source. I would think sitting fairly immobile on a heating pad in your lap may cause a vicious cycle. Constipation can be caused by being under active. Only having a small area for heat sourcing will keep the chick from being active, the way it would be in a warm brooder with the ability to move around without losing the heat source. Being so inactive can cause any appetite to decrease, while also keeping them at a slower metabolism rate.
Of course, this is only one opinion, one issue and very well may be miles off track from what is going on with your baby. Myself, I would be looking into getting at least one more chick, a brooder set up with food, water, heat and room enough for the chick to move around & be active.

 

[somebody]

Hey! Its starting to eat its food finally!

 

[EmmaRainboe]

Hey! Its starting to eat its food finally!

Yay! Always a good sign!

 

[somebody]

I’ve read the posts & still can’t really tell if this chick is alone or has other chickadee friends...? One of the things I’ve learned on this site is that chickens are far from solitary animals, they are flock animals and even having just one other chicken to make a “flock” can have a very surprising effect on their ability to thrive. Also, I wonder about the heat source. I would think sitting fairly immobile on a heating pad in your lap may cause a vicious cycle. Constipation can be caused by being under active. Only having a small area for heat sourcing will keep the chick from being active, the way it would be in a warm brooder with the ability to move around without losing the heat source. Being so inactive can cause any appetite to decrease, while also keeping them at a slower metabolism rate.
Of course, this is only one opinion, one issue and very well may be miles off track from what is going on with your baby. Myself, I would be looking into getting at least one more chick, a brooder set up with food, water, heat and room enough for the chick to move around & be active.

Don't worry it has 2 other friends, its just they have been pecking at it's eyes and I didn't want her to be hurt while she was trying to recover. I wanna try and reintroduce them soon.

 

[Baumshell28]

Don't worry it has 2 other friends, its just they have been pecking at it's eyes and I didn't want her to be hurt while she was trying to recover. I wanna try and reintroduce them soon.

Usually, if you “enrich” their environment, then they’re less apt to entertain themselves at another’s expense. They should have enough room to retreat if they need personal space. I treat my chicken run the same way I treated their brooder...kinda like a daycare center. Enrichment is anything that changes their normal environment & breaks up monotony. In the brooder I added a paint roller pan with sand & “dust” ingredients for bathing. I would also occasionally bury dried mealworms in it for them to “find”. I fashioned a perch or roost with different materials & would change the construction every few days, which would occupy them with having to figure out how to climb it built a different way. Now, in their run, I have a perch around a small tree, an old antique wooden ladder, a designated sand/dust bathing area, large wooden scrap blocks to climb & stand on, a xylophone & baby mirror attached to the wire fence, a bale of alfalfa to destroy and Ive also hung ears of corn randomly around the run for them to peck at and push around.

 

[Kris5902]

Do you have a heat source for your chicks? Where are you keeping them? At this age they still need to be fairly warm. Normally they would have a mama hen to snuggle under to heat up, without that you need to provide a heat source for them. Pasty butts can be a Sign of poor temperatures. Have you seen any bloody droppings at all?

 

[somebody]

Do you have a heat source for your chicks? Where are you keeping them? At this age they still need to be fairly warm. Normally they would have a mama hen to snuggle under to heat up, without that you need to provide a heat source for them. Pasty butts can be a Sign of poor temperatures. Have you seen any bloody droppings at all?

I have a little set up with a heat lamp, their in a fairly large box compared to their size (Although I want to find a bigger one.)