# Baby chicken problems



## Becca199212

Chick is 3 days old, he has pooped since he hatched.... but he didn't poop at all last night, I can't see any from him today- he is on sawdust so it's possible its just soaked in. He's a lone chick and is eating (or at least trying to) and drinking fine but his fluff above and below his vent is sticky and un-fluff like, his vent also appears swollen and quite hard underneath but it may just be me- I have nothing to compare him to. I tried bathing it in warm water and this didn't help.
Any ideas? Am I just being paranoid?


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## plamenh

Masage his vent with cotton dipped in warm water. Make sure chick has enough heat to digest. you can use olive oil to soften vent. Is s/he drinking water? How fine is this sawdust? May that be a problem?


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## Becca199212

He's definitely drinking plenty. The sawdust is quite big, I don't think he could have eaten any of it.


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## pigeonmama

May have coccidiosis. Babies are so "touchy". Need to be kept very warm. Go to www.browneggblueegg.com (I think) and email Alan. He's a chicken guru.
Daryl


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## spirit wings

you can feed just cracked corn for a few days then back to the starter feed, some clean sand in a jar lid to pick at can help also, make sure he is at the right temp not too hot or too cold and what you are keeping him in is not too large, a rubber maid bin to hold a pair of shoes works well, also make sure he is not eating the shavings some will, I usually put that in when they are eating well after about a week, when just hatch I use paper towels only.


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## keystonepaul

The chicks can die from the caked on poop(pasty butt) not allowing poop to pass. Soften it with a warm paper towel (part of one) or q-tip as been mentioned. and clean it up. The first one I did ever I pulled the poor things tail feathers out, but did clean her up good. She looks silly as heck and didn't grow them back after molting. She looks pretty silly next to her tailed sisters, but she's been a good broody hen and great mom having raised several broods. So take care of the pasty butt but take your time and don't be impatient. Good luck, Keystonepaul


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## darkfur

keystonepaul said:


> The chicks can die from the caked on poop(pasty butt) not allowing poop to pass. Soften it with a warm paper towel (part of one) or q-tip as been mentioned. and clean it up. The first one I did ever I pulled the poor things tail feathers out, but did clean her up good. She looks silly as heck and didn't grow them back after molting. She looks pretty silly next to her tailed sisters, but she's been a good broody hen and great mom having raised several broods. So take care of the pasty butt but take your time and don't be impatient. Good luck, Keystonepaul


+1 real important to clean that little bottom up even if you do pill a few feathers out, if it blocks up the chick will surely die
make sure you are giving a food with coccidiostat included, and I find a tiny bit of apple cider vinegar helps chicks and chickens with digestive problems


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## Becca199212

Ok, so he's off the sawdust, I'm feeding him a drop of olive oil once an hour and he has molasses in his water but still no poops. His vent is not blocked at all from the outside, but very swollen as if it's blocked form inside. He also smells pretty bad... he's tweeting constantly and sounds so distressed. Please, any more advice?


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## spirit wings

he may be clogged with shavings, just keep up what your doing and wait.
just wondering why he is not with his chicken momma?


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## Becca199212

I ordered the eggs of the internet to hatch myself in an incubator- experience to write on my CV- he was the only one out of six to hatch.


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## plamenh

*Chicken ENEMA*

Ok, this is information from the book, but I’m not sure myself of it’s efficiency with chickens, so *wait until more people give their opinion*.

Suck warm water in the syringe.
Syringe tip must be lubricated with vegetable oil.
Gently insert tip in the vent and slowly press plunger. Be careful not to damage tissue.
No more than 2~3 ml should be used on this small chick.

I know it works with people and animals when cloged.


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## spirit wings

Becca199212 said:


> I ordered the eggs of the internet to hatch myself in an incubator- experience to write on my CV- he was the only one out of six to hatch.


oh, ok, Ive done that...his name is ranger, because he was the only one to hatch.... do you have an option of taking him to the vet, they may beable to treat him better. I would not wait till it gets bad, by that time it is usually too late.


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## Feefo

Hi Becca,

First, you are not being paranoid!

But some questions:

Is this a pigeon squab or a chicken chick? 

If chicken chick what sort?

What is he eating? 

Can you have a vet look at him? I had a wood pigeon that had an enormous lump of hard matter expressed by the vet (not an egg).

You could replace the vegetable oil with liquid paraffin, that is not absorbed by the digestive system so goes right through as a lubricant.


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## Charis

It's curious to me that this baby was the only one out of 6 to hatch. I suspect the baby may need antibiotics and you should *not delay taking the baby to a vet that has experience in treating chickens*.
I'm going to go get the link for Back Yard Chickens which is a good resource.


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## Becca199212

I think he's sorted, or at least is ok for now, the man Daryl gave me the link to told me to gently squeeze his sides forcing him to poop, there was a little bit of blood and he'll probably be sore for a few days but I got out a perfectly round pea-sized ball of sawdust, he seems to have calmed down quite a bit and is now resting. Should I carry on with the olive oil and molasses until he poops himself or should he be ok now?

Edit: Theres not ONE vet here that will treat chickens, I'm on BYC and although it's a great website, you guys have been so much for helpful. 
He's a brahma bantam chicken on chick crumb Cynthia.


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## Charis

Becca199212 said:


> I think he's sorted, or at least is ok for now, the man Daryl gave me the link to told me to gently squeeze his sides forcing him to poop, there was a little bit of blood and he'll probably be sore for a few days but I got out a perfectly round pea-sized ball of sawdust, he seems to have calmed down quite a bit and is now resting. Should I carry on with the olive oil and molasses until he poops himself or should he be ok now?


No more sawdust...no sand...nothing small that the baby may eat.
I would still take this one to a vet that knows about chickens.

http://www.backyardchickens.com/


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## spirit wings

Becca199212 said:


> I think he's sorted, or at least is ok for now, the man Daryl gave me the link to told me to gently squeeze his sides forcing him to poop, there was a little bit of blood and he'll probably be sore for a few days but I got out a perfectly round pea-sized ball of sawdust, he seems to have calmed down quite a bit and is now resting. Should I carry on with the olive oil and molasses until he poops himself or should he be ok now?
> 
> Edit: Theres not ONE vet here that will treat chickens, I'm on BYC and although it's a great website, you guys have been so much for helpful.
> He's a brahma bantam chicken on chick crumb Cynthia.


oh that is good, he ate too much wood! poor thing....hope he continues to get better, not sure about the blood part, but I guess you just have to wait. I know what you mean about getting a vet to see a chicken...some avian vets will, we have vets here that will...they may not have alot of experience on a chicken but at least they give it a try...I think most vets are just afraid of something they are unfamiliar with....anyway, sounds like your doing all you can...is he drinking? I do not think him being the only to hatch has anything to do with his problemo, eggs in the mail are risky to hatch, I got 12 and only one hatched and he was not sick.


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## Feefo

I am glad that it is all getting sorted, Becca. I think I missed information on the first read. .

I am surprised the bedding got all the way through to the cloaca! I took a very baby wood pigeon to a sanctuary where he was placed in a brooder with wood chip for bedding...one morning his crop was full of wood chip which had to be surgically removed . I think that all babies are unpredictable about what they will suddenly consider edible and what they will be able to swallow.


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## alhowiriny

I've only read this thread today ( after i received PM from plamenh )

Since the problem apparently solved here's some addition;
When chick hatchs put it on unslippery box (i.e use towel) so it won't develop splay legs & give neomycin (antibiotic) + molasses or honey or sugar after 6 hours of hatching & leave it for 6 hours to get rid of any bacterial infection that might entered through the navel; then fasting it for 12 hours to absorb the yolk sac's content (so it wont rotten). after fasting provide plenty of food (with high protien 20% at least) put the food in a short plate; at the first week these chicks can't distinguish between foods & nonefoods, they will pick at anything shiny (like water; and that's how they learn drinking) and they will pick at any particles (like sawdust, food, each others.. etc) and thats how they learn eating; the temperature should be 35~37c for the first week (then lowered 2c every week). after the 1st week you can put them on sawdust or any alternative (i prefer saw shaving or straw).

Prevention + Vaccination:
7 days old (newcastle live HB-1 + IB H120)
14 days old (treat for cocci); they won't be infected with cocci within the first week; only after 2 weeks.
21 days old (newcastle live Lasota + IB H120)
28 days old (treat for salmonella)
35 days old (treat for pasteurelosis)
Give ACV in water for a week after treatment.

From 42 days onward vaccinate with (Newcastle live Lasota) every 3~4 months; and examine for ulcerative pododermatitis (bumble foot); lice/mites..

Note: don't let the chicks have 24h lighting (when using light bulb as a heating source); it will cause many (behavioral) problems. like picking on each others vents/legs or eggs/feathers eating.. the perfect lighting is 25 watt / 1 cubic meter.​


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## spirit wings

how is the little chickie?


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## MaryOfExeter

If I'm not mistaken, during the first three days when the chicks are still feeding off their yolk sac, they do not poo. Not until they begin eating solid food. But they must be provided clean water from the very start.


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## alhowiriny

They will make their first dropping within/after 24h; the kidneys will start to function for the first time and thats why their first dropping consist of transparent liquid with some whitish and bright greenish particles (urea + gut flora).​


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## spirit wings

how is the chickie?....


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