Please help!

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jennhartv

jennhartv

In the Brooder
Apr 26, 2015
57
3
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I bought 20 chicks from the farm store and got 25 from McMurray Hatchery. Day 1 was great...
Day 2, all of the chicks from the hatchery were lethargic. I separated them immediately.

Day 3 lost 5 chicks from hatchery, but the rest looked OK.

Day 4, all good.

Day 5, lost 7 hatchery chicks, and the others are lethargic again.

Day 6, farm store chicks are now acting lethargic.
Day 7, They are all dropping like flies and my heart is breaking. I am down to 20 live chicks, and a lot of them aren't doing well. In fact, one died while I typed this.

Here's what I have done:

-Probiotics/electrolytes in water
-egg yolk in food
-put regular water bowl in cage and nipple waterer
-kept constant eye on poop... Nothing abnormal except for a few keep getting pasty butt.

It's like they are fine... And as soon as they start showing signs of lethargy and stumbling around, they rapidly decline within a couple hours and die.

Any ideas??
 
What's the temperature?

Do they have a spot to warm up and lots of cool space to escape the heat?

How's the ventilation?

A probiotic should help with pasted vent.

Have you contacted the hatchery?
 
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I keep it around 95 degrees. And I'm constantly watching for them to show signs of needing the temp adjusted (crowding, or panting with wings out)

They are actually in a large rabbit cage, with plastic bottom and wire sides, so I assume ventilation is great, as well as plenty of room to self-adjust temp.

I did contact McMurray and they are sending replacements, but it's too late for the farm store. The hatchery just said probably rough shipping, but the problem is getting worse as time goes on!

We have raised over 100 chicks in the past and we've never ran into something like this :( Whenever we did have issues it was always the normal stuff and quickly remedied :/ This has literally been my worst week ever as a chicken Mom :(
 
It could have been rough shipping but that doesn't explain the other chicks dying.
Sounds like they contracted something or perhaps it's too hot.
Personally, I think 95 is too high. At a week of age, I wouldn't have it over 85.
That said, I don't even use a thermometer. I have big brooder spaces with a single warm spot and lots of cool space.
 
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Here are a couple of my setups.



This is the outside of the building when the following 3 pictures were taken.
Outside the space under the brooder it was in the 30s.
















A mother hen doesn't heat all the ambient air. She provides a hot spot to warm up and off they go to explore the cold spaces.


 
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I love your set up! I start mine in the house for the first few weeks and then move them to our outdoor brooder. My 95 degree area is just the warmest spot in the indoor setup at this point, but maybe I'll try lowering it?

I'm just confused, because this is the exact set up we've raised all of our chicks in :/ I've got nothing better to try though! Thank you say much for your help.
 
Something could easily have been brought in from either source.

What state are you in? It may be well worth sending a chick to the state poultry lab for necropsy before you lose many more.
 
I'm in Kansas. I'm going to send one in.
Update: I've lost 4 more, and a couple of the live ones are bleeding from their "nostrils".

On a lighter note... A few still look great and have no signs of anything.
 
It would be best to separate the ones with no symptoms from the others.

Your lab is in Manhattan.

Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
Kansas State University, CVM
L232 Mosier Hall, 1800 Dennison Ave
Manhattan, Kansas 66506
Phone: 785-532-4454 Fax 785-532-4039
 
I have been doing my best to separate them as symptoms appear. Although every morning I wake up all the brooders have more chicks affected.

I currently have a pen for for the hatchery birds, a pen for the farm store birds, and a pen for the sick birds.

This just sucks.
 

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