We’d all like our little chicks to hatch and come out as happy and healthy as possible, but, unfortunately, this does not always happen.
If your baby chick is starting to lean to one side then this could mean that there is something wrong with the bird.
Here is what you need to know:
Table of Contents
Baby chick leaning to one side:
If one of your birds starts leaning to the side it will stick out like a sore thumb to you, and, to the other flock members.
Here is why your little bird may be doing this:
Vitamin A deficiency:
An issue with your little chick’s diet is usually the reason behind issues with its health.
In this case, a vitamin A deficiency can cause your bird to lean over to the side.
What to do:
Check that you’re feeding the bird the correct feed, and, check that you are feeding the bird the correct amount of feed for its age and weight.
You can also add additional sources of vitamin A to your bird’s diet.
Food sources, that are rich in vitamin A, that you can add to your birds diet, include broccoli, spinach, crushed dandelion greens, peas, and tomatoes
If your little birds aren’t interested in eating these foods, then consider giving them vitamin supplements from poultry stores.
Vitamin B deficiency:
Another reason why your bird may have issues with its legs, and may be leaning to the side, may be because the bird has a vitamin B deficiency.
This vitamin plays a key role in optimal bone strength and quality.
A deficiency of vitamin B can cause your chick to develop issues with its legs, like leaning to one side.
What to do:
Just as with the vitamin A deficiency, your bird’s leg issues can be rectified by supplementing vitamin B into the bird’s diet.
Sources of vitamin B that you can give your chicks include fish meal, soybeans, beet greens, spinach, eggs, and asparagus.
You can alternatively give the bird a vitamin B complex as a way of supplementing this nutrient into your bird’s diet.
You can dissolve this vitamin into a little bit of water, and then drip several drops of this water into your bird’s mouth.
Give the bird this water throughout the day.
Injury:
Your bird may also lean to one side, and favor one leg, because the bird’s other leg is injured.
These young birds are fragile and their legs are weak because they are so young. Because of this, they can easily become injured.
A fall, a fight with another bird, or, playing with another bird may have resulted in an injury to your baby bird’s leg.
These injuries can be painful or uncomfortable causing the little bird to favor the uninjured leg and lean over.
What to do:
Catch the bird in a calm manner without chasing it. If the bird runs, then the impact could further injure the bird.
Once caught, examine the chick for any wounds or bleeding.
The injury may be hidden so you may need to lift up the bird’s feathers when examining the bird.
If the injury is not too severe you can clean the injury, wrap the bird’s leg in position, and isolate the bird to allow the chick to heal on its own without the stress of other birds around it.
Fortunately, these birds are resilient so your bird has a good chance of recovering from its injury.
In addition, because it is a young bird, its bones will heal faster than they would if it was an older bird.
This faster healing is possible because the young chick’s bones are still growing.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Why Does My Chick Look Like It’s Gasping For Air?, What To Do If A Chick Is Gasping For Air, 2 Day Old Chick Gasping, Chick Gasping And Chirping, Chick Gasping After Drinking, Baby Chick Vomiting, How To Force Feed A Baby Chick, Signs Of Intestinal Blockage In Chickens, Chicken Keeps Opening Mouth Like Gagging