3 week chick hunched, lethargic, much smaller than other chick

[amandaevans21]

Hi! First timer with chicks. I have 2 olive eggers (not sure breed of parents). I have noticed this week that one seems to have gotten quite noticeable bigger than the other, but otherwise everything seemed normal.

Today I am noticing that the smaller of the chicks seems a bit lethargic, and is falling asleep standing up frequently. She is also standing sort of hunched looking with her head down. She is eating and drinking normally.

She seems to have possibly something going on under the beak? She moves her head when drinking or eating a lot almost as if she’s having trouble getting it down. Im including pictures.

 

[Perris]

hello @amandaevans21 - welcome to BYC
She's not well. I don't know what could be wrong but I'll flag up some people who might and hopefully one of them or someone else knowledgeable will be along with some advice for you soon.
@azygous @coach723 @dawg53 @Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock can you help here please?

 

[coach723]

How old are they? What do the chicks droppings look like?
I would start it on Corid right away, in case it is coccidiosis, which is common. Corid is available at most tractor supply stores and feed stores, it comes in liquid or powder, you can use either, most people prefer the liquid. Get which ever they have, it's usually in the livestock or cattle section.
Dosing is 1 1/2 tsp of the powder or 2 tsp of the liquid per gallon of water, that water being the only water they have access to, make it fresh daily, treat for 5 - 7 days. Treat them both (or all of them if there are more in there). I would also give the sick on an oral dose, instructions for that are here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/corid-oral-drench-instructions.1211991/
Corid is safe and won't do any harm even if it's something else. If it's coccidiosis it can be fatal quickly, so starting treatment as soon as possible is important. Common symptoms are lethargy, sitting puffed up, runny, mucousy, or bloody droppings, going off food and water. She may be having trouble emptying her crop, which could be an indication that digestion is slowed, which coccidiosis can also cause. It also could be a crop problem, if she ate something she can't pass and has a blockage. Feel her crop to see if it feels like just feed in there. The crop is tiny on them, but it's low on the right side of the neck, just feel gently with your fingers.
It's also possible that there is something else going on that is preventing normal absorption of nutrients and stunting her growth. Some chicks fail to thrive for unknown reasons.
Pictures of Corid below:

 

[azygous]

A conspicuously small chick is almost always a failure-to-thrive (FTT) chick. They aren't able to process calories efficiently so they lose ground in growth. They can't seem to get warm. They often get constipated and their crops get clogged. They seem to hit a wall about this age. They require special feeding to get them caught up.

First, this chick may have a crop obstruction and/or gizzard clog. Give it coconut oil in tiny pieces chilled to hardness so it's easy to feed into its beak, about a teaspoon worth.

After its cleaned out, in addition to its feed, give it minced boiled egg and crumbled tofu with Poultry Nutri-drench sprinkled over it.

It doesn't hurt to treat for coccidiosis as @coach723 suggested. A little sugar added to this water will further benefit this chick and help it drink more.

 

[Ksilva722]

How old are they? What do the chicks droppings look like?
I would start it on Corid right away, in case it is coccidiosis, which is common. Corid is available at most tractor supply stores and feed stores, it comes in liquid or powder, you can use either, most people prefer the liquid. Get which ever they have, it's usually in the livestock or cattle section.
Dosing is 1 1/2 tsp of the powder or 2 tsp of the liquid per gallon of water, that water being the only water they have access to, make it fresh daily, treat for 5 - 7 days. Treat them both (or all of them if there are more in there). I would also give the sick on an oral dose, instructions for that are here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/corid-oral-drench-instructions.1211991/
Corid is safe and won't do any harm even if it's something else. If it's coccidiosis it can be fatal quickly, so starting treatment as soon as possible is important. Common symptoms are lethargy, sitting puffed up, runny, mucousy, or bloody droppings, going off food and water. She may be having trouble emptying her crop, which could be an indication that digestion is slowed, which coccidiosis can also cause. It also could be a crop problem, if she ate something she can't pass and has a blockage. Feel her crop to see if it feels like just feed in there. The crop is tiny on them, but it's low on the right side of the neck, just feel gently with your fingers.
It's also possible that there is something else going on that is preventing normal absorption of nutrients and stunting her growth. Some chicks fail to thrive for unknown reasons.
Pictures of Corid below:View attachment 3046668
View attachment 3046671

Hello, I’m unfamiliar with this plate for but have a chick that may have this? She’s been slow since I got her and always hunched over. I feel so bad, everyone I have asked has said she’s fine or maybe slow. She eats and drinks and poops look normal but she’s always tired and hunched over asleep. Please help

 

[coach723]

How old is the chick? How long have you had it? Pictures?
It may be a failure to thrive chick. They have unknown issues that may be from abnormalities that we can't see caused by incubation/development.