I have just started raising chicks. I have 30 10 day old chicks that I have had since they were 3 days old. They are in what appears to be good health with plenty of food and water. This morining when I went out to feed them there was one with blood where his/her tail feathers should be and the other chicks were going wild picking at it. I have isolated the chick, but what can I do to help the chick and prevent it from happening again.

What kind of heat light are you using. I have heard that white light can lead to this picking and cannabalism, but have not experienced this. If you are using white light, try switching to red. Isolating is essential, and the chick should heal. Watch the others closely to make sure they don't pick another victim...let us know how it goes.

I now have 5 chicks that are isolated. They keep going from pick at one to another. I finally got a red heat light today. Hope this helps. My recovery cage is getting full.

Scott, there are other factors that can lead to picking, as well, including being too hot, too crowded, and without fresh air (ventilation). Sometimes, they just pick for no apparent reason, especially high-strung breeds like Leghorns. Proper temp (chick height) is 90-95 degrees first week and lowering by 5 degrees each week thereafter. They need 1 sq ft. of space up to 8 wks old. You can also give them greens (grass, lettuce) each day to pick at instead of each other. To treat chicks that have been picked, smear pine tar or black grease (both usually available at your feed store) on the injured area and keep up the treatment until healed. If you use this treatment then you generally don't have to separate the hurt birds because the pickers won't like the taste of either ointment. Good luck

BTW, forgot to mention the following website that has LOTS of poultry raising information:

http://home.earthlink.net/~manzanovalph/cyberlibrary.html