Keeping sick chicken warm.

[Chrisybells]

hello! I've got a very injured 2 month old (roughly) chicken.
I've taken her to the vet and gotten her checked out and basically was told to keep her clean, make sure she's eating/drinking and warm.
She's staying inside the house and I was wondering on how warm should I keep her? Will she be okay keeping herself warm with some tissue paper around her? Or should I keep her warm with a hot water bottle all night?
Help I really love this little chick and want to keep her alive.

 

[SIMZ]

You could add a small light bulb for some heat - just make sure she can get out from under it. If your home is 65-70 and draft free, I would consider that "warm", so you'd be fine. If she under a heat lamp before the injury then you'd want to keep her at the temp she was used to.

Tissue paper won't keep warm and will probably just get wet and dirty. The hot water bottle would be ok if you have one.

Best of luck! I hope she pulls through for you!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

hello! I've got a very injured 2 month old (roughly) chicken.
I've taken her to the vet and gotten her checked out and basically was told to keep her clean, make sure she's eating/drinking and warm.
She's staying inside the house and I was wondering on how warm should I keep her? Will she be okay keeping herself warm with some tissue paper around her? Or should I keep her warm with a hot water bottle all night?
Help I really love this little chick and want to keep her alive.

HI @Chrisybells Welcome to BYC

Ideally a sick/injured chicken should be kept warm at around 75-80F, but you would want to watch her behavior (panting/wings spread out) and make sure she isn't overheating. If she is inside, then she is probably o.k. without additional heat. A hot water bottle would work fine, you can also use a heating pad or as suggested a small light bulb.

Tissue paper would not be the best material to keep her on. If you can get some puppy pads, an old towel or even clean pine shavings that would be better.

Is she eating/drinking o.k.? Did the vet give you any medications for her? Poultry vitamins in her water for a couple of days may help give her a boost. If she isn't eating her chick starter well, you can try offering it wet along with a little chopped egg to entice her.

If you have photos of her or where she is being kept, we will be happy to take a look.
I hope she gets better soon.

 

[GretaGarboFirst]

a small portion of scrambled eggs might help. change them out daily for freshness.
When I have had to bring my chickens into my home , I wrap the dog crate i use with a light cloth to keep drafts out during the night. . leave top of crate uncovered....just block out draft.

 

[micstrachan]

This doesn’t help you right now, but there are microwavable heating pads on the market. I’m thinking of getting one for my emergency kit.

 

[micstrachan]

I’m an idiot. Totally forgot that I already keep mitvwarmers on hand all tge time. These are readily available at hardware (and other) stores. This might work for you andmight even be available at your local pharmacy, too.

 

[Nik1]

You could add a small light bulb for some heat - just make sure she can get out from under it. If your home is 65-70 and draft free, I would consider that "warm", so you'd be fine. If she under a heat lamp before the injury then you'd want to keep her at the temp she was used to.

Tissue paper won't keep warm and will probably just get wet and dirty. The hot water bottle would be ok if you have one.

Best of luck! I hope she pulls through for you!

I’m

 

[Nik1]

I’m now doing the same thing with my hen keep her warm I put a old fleece sweater and she likes it. Plus I have her inside my garage in a card board box with a heater on set to 70 degrees. I wish I would of known sooner to make sure there warm I think it has a lot to do with why she doesn’t feel good. Best of luck