PLEASE HELP!!! I purchased 2 1day old chicks at the feed store today.One is doing great, the other wont eat and barely will drink.The one that is eating is active and doing greeat with a full crop.The weakone hasnt anything in his crop and will only lay down and close his eyes...Any advice on how to get this little guy to eat?? THANKS!!

Kim koolk9@cyberport.net

-- kim quinlan (koolk9@cyberport.net), March 05, 2002

Answers

Keep him warm, but not hot, with a light. Dip his beek in the water several times and also the food too make sure he knows where it is. If neccesary you could put him on a hot water bottle covered in a towel or a slide-zip baggie filled with hot water. Sometimes there are weak chicks that just don't make it, no matter what.

-- tricia (never-enough-pets@excite.com), March 05, 2002.

Do they have a heat lamp on them? The one that is laying down....mix up some corn syrup with water(if you don't have corn syrup then use sugar and water) just until you get a sweet taste with your finger then use an eye dropper and give him or her a 3-4 dropperfuls.Corn syrup does the better job. Do this as many times as you can tonight yet. I like to mix some chick feed up with a little water in a miracle whip lid for them to peck at. I will open the little chick's mouth and scoop up some feed into it's bill...to give it the idea of how to eat. A couple of days of this process and the chick usually perks up and survives,but you must persist in being it's mother if you want it to survive! I like to put the corn syrup water in a miracle whip lid for a couple of days to get them off to a good start. No longer or it will constipate them and be sure the chick doesn't have doo-doo stuck on it's hiney. If so then use a warm watered paper towel to remove carefully. Let me know how the chick does!!

-- Carla (herbs@computer-concepts.com), March 05, 2002.

My first thought is that is has pasty vent. it's very common in chicks you brood yourselves and is caused by them becoming chilled at one time or another.

Check it's vent, if you see dry poop stuck, then the poor chick is dying because it can't relieve itself! you can try daubbing warm water on the dry poop & carefully pick it off, or you can take tweezers and gently crush it off. after you've got him clean, it's very important to get his behind dry again (if you used water). make sure you've got the temp right in the brooder (1st wk should be 95*, 2nd wk 90*, drop 5* every week)and put a bit of dry oatmeal in the processor to grind it up fine. the oatmeal should take care of that pasty vent. Good luck & sure hope the little guy makes it!

-- Buk (noaddy@chickensrus.com), March 05, 2002.

hard boil an egg. mash it up. my son's baby chicks seem to remember the smell and start eating when he is having this trouble. good luck.

-- billie schneider (canyonkaty@hctc.net), March 07, 2002.