Odd chicken behaviour

[Linzy]

So we have 8 little chicks that we hatched from an incubator they are now about 10 weeks old and 1 of them is very odd.

She seems to tuck her head down under her body and just stays there. She will every now and again right herself and have food and drink then go back to doing the head tucking again

They have a good varied diet of corn, growing pellets, greens and ive been crushing up fat boils for them thinking that maybe the head tucking was a mineral/nutrient deficency.

We had her out in the green house today and she seemed fine eating away at all the worms and grubs we found her.

Any ideas on what this is. She has been like it for about a week. She has all her feathers still but she looks a little scuffy round the neck but i think thats more down to the way she tuck her head under.

Any advise please?

[scorpius]

Was going to suggest possible vitamin deficiency or she may have had a bang on the head?. Also check the expiry date on the growers pellets. Have you Avipro/poultry spice/nettex powder or something similar if you need to give them vitamins? Are they kept indoors or outside?

I would cut out the fat balls as the growers will/should be providing them with the necessary nutrients at only 10 weeks & you dont want them getting fatty deposits on their liver etc. Use growers as the main feed.

What breed are they? Sorry about all the Qs, just a bit easier to hopefully find an answer for you. Do you have a pic of the chick?

[Linzy]

They are kept mainly in the shed at the mo, but come out when the weather is nice to scatch about in the garden. I would say that they on a daily basis get 80% growers and 20% corn. But they get handfulls of lettuce and grass each day. They are white silkies which i have a feeling may be part of the problem as ive read in a few places that if they hit there head they can fall into difficulties.

I dont have any nettex but ive just ordered some online.

[Scarlet]

Tucking their head in is often a sign of illness. Is there anything else that looks wrong? Ruffled feathers? What do the dropping look like? Drinking & eating ok? Eyes clear?
To be honest, I wouldn't feeds young birds corn. Corn should be fed as scratch spread out in the evening as a treat- it has no nutritional value and will make birds fat! Lettuce has no nutritional value and can cause diarrhoea. I would cut out all treats and only feed with the growers pellets.

[RichmondHens]

I am with Scarlet on this and would suspect coccidiosis in a youngster of this age. To be on the safe side I would dose them all with Coxoid (available on line) or Baycox (only available from vet) and keep them very very clean and dry.

[petal]

coxoid is cheap enough, without pictures its difficult for us to help. silkies are very tricky, it could just be that you have one that isn't thriving- not all creatures are born perfect. As a poultry breeder, I cull out those that don't 'thrive'- I understand that this might be difficult but its how silkie breeders maintain their stock , they focus on the healthy and dispose of one that might cause problems for the others. I really hope this helps without offending you.

[scorpius]

Just had a feeling you might say silkies, as they can be prone to stargazing/neurological problems.
Good advice form the others too.
Coxoid wont hurt just in case of coccidiosis, but there are a lot of different coccis & some do require Baycox from the vet.

I, personally, use medicated chick crumb & growers & if one is a little off will add ACV/garlic to water & oregano to feed plus some dandelion leaves. Obviously none of this would replace any vets advice but just what I do. HTH

[petal]

I have found better advice on here than any advice any vet has ever given me, Scorpius! Love the dandelion leaf idea! If you are breeding seriously, it is best to cull out those that don't thrive - I refuse to use any drugs whatsoever and can see an improvement in stock annually.