Foamy poop? Really watery poop?

I may be to only person who exams her chicks poop (hope not - stems from being in nursing and checking BM for signs of illness- blood in the stool, etc.) Some of my chicks have pastey butts (I get that - unlike rabbits some poop will stick to their down) and I have been cleaning them to prevent blockage. However, last night I noticed that some of chicks had foamy bubbly poop, some really watery, some so watery that it was liquid and some 'normal' creme consistancy poop.
My husband ordered the chicks from a hatchery online that guaranteed, vaccinated (?) and medicated the chicks against coccis (?) the hatchery appeared reputable but I worry that I am doing something wrong.
Do I need to add something to their diet -unmedicated started feed is what they are eating? They just arrived on Monday (so about a week old).
Should I add elctrolytes and vitamins? Can I over do it? What is an organic mite/licer? When do I need to apply it?
Am I over thinking this- I mean birds have been around for thousands of years.

They may need medicated starter. How often are the foamy , watery poops? If it's every 5-8 or so, (and IMO very nasty smelling) then that's a normal cecal poop. Couldn't hurt to post pics though.

Here's some links that show what's normal and not

http://happyhenhouse.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=poop&action=display&thread=7588
http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=17568.0






Edited to add another link

we were told not to feed medicated feed due to the chicks being vaccinated- feeding emdicated feed would negate the coccis vaccination.

I remember last spring when I was raising my first batch of chicks I worried about everything. The first time I noticed a full crop. The first cecal poop. When their feathers started to come in and they were picking at each other's quills. The temperature in the brooder. I lost sleep most of one night before I figured out that the temperature spike in my brooder was caused by the fact that my chicks were sleeping on the wireless remote temperature gauge.

I think you can over do it, if you give your birds treatments they don't need and those treatments have side effects. I personally don't worm or treat my chickens for mites unless I know that they have these things. It's pretty unlikely that chicks as young as yours could have either, yet.

What you're seeing is in all probability normal cecal poops.

I agree with Elmo...I too have been worrying about everything...haven't had the foamy poops yet...but looking at the poop page helped me know what to look for and eased my nervousness about different poops....

Elmo, you are a great encouragement!!

Quote:
Thank you!!! This was a question I wasn't sure how to ask...didn't think I'd ever spend time poring over pics of bird poop but that was VERY helpful!

I was just like you when I got my first chicks back in March! I was so worried about them I could hardly function! The first time I saw one of my chickies trying to give herself a dust bath I almost lost it, thought she had a broken wing or some sort of neurological issue

As the poop page shows, the variation of "normal" poops is huge. My girls has foamy orange poop, and it was cecal. I did put a tiny amount of organic apple cider vinegar in their water every few days or so. Keep up with the unmedicated chick starter since they are vaccinated. I wouldn't worry unless you see blood. I didn't give treats until they were a month old, with chick grit of course. When they moved outside there was a dramatic change in their poops, I guess as they were adjusting to eating new types of foods. Now that they have been outside for a month poops have gotten solid and much more normal aside from the occasional cecal poop.

I use food grade diotameacous earth in their bedding now that they are older, and put a small amount in a dusty area that they like to dust bathe in. That is supposed to help prevent mites. As for worming, I have not done it yet, and I think if you choose to, you're supposed to wait until they are 3-4 months old. I found a good post on worming and will add it here for you.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=216407
Check out the posts from threehorses for her worming protocol

Relax. And enjoy them!

Andrea

Hi guys I just got my one day old chicks in the mail today and all of them have pooped green foamy poop. Should I be concerned or is that what they do for their first poop?

aggiegirl009 said:

Hi guys I just got my one day old chicks in the mail today and all of them have pooped green foamy poop. Should I be concerned or is that what they do for their first poop?

Click to expand...

Yeah, that can be pretty normal....Give them a couple days, it should start to solidify......tho poops can vary from looser to more solid.
Links below doesn't show chick poops, but might help you learn that they can have many different forms of 'normal' poops.

Good references, just don't jump to any terrible conclusions too quickly:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/02/whats-scoop-on-chicken-poop-digestive.html
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/?topic=17568.0