So I’m on my second year of raising chickens. Last year I ended up with 4 roosters and 5 hens out of my batch. So this spring I went back to tractor supply and got 7 premium pullets plus two Guinea hens (all different breeds I have a mixed flock). those chicks are about 4 weeks old now and practically fully feathered. The only concern I’ve had with them is wet spraying sneezes and one chick always pecking the air (my last post was about this with vids).
On April 25 me and my friend drove 10 hours and two states over to pick up some show quality silkie chicks (I already have two silkies a hen and roo but they are tractor supply quality). We met up with the breeder and saw the babies that hatched that morning. I ended up choosing 4 chicks ($50 each). Two showgirls, a black one and a white one, as well as two bearded babies a black and a buff.
The 4 silkie chicks are in a cardboard box as a brooder and they got the older chicks heat lamp (older chicks are already all good with room temp). I noticed it only took a few days for the wet sneezes I saw the older chicks doing to spread to the silkie babies. Then starting 3 days ago their necks started getting crazy. One babies neck is shedding skin like a snake but is still soft movable skin (I was putting coconut oil on but I was worried oil was making it worse so I switched to bag balm) their are also like five very tiny wounds on the back of the white ones neck. Looks like she might have been getting pecked a bit (never caught one in the act).
Then there is the black showgirl. She’s the one I’m worrying about most. She’s practically the same size she was when she hatched while the other silkies even the other showgirl are outgrowing her. She’s not lethargic and she’s a good eater and drinker but I have never felt her crop full it’s always so empty and bony and while holding her her breathing has a clicking to it when she breaths in. Idk if there is liquid in her lungs or what that entails. If
Then there is her neck, it’s thick skinned, dry, and rough like old leather that has sat in the sun very different from the intensive shedding her sib seems to be going through. (Sadly I didn’t take a pic of the black ones neck pre bag balm so the skin does look much better in the pic then it was even 12 hrs ago.
Okay so I know this post is a lil crazy and all over the place but I’m just so nervous and there are so many different factors at play I wanted to make sure I covered everything.
One last thing that’s terrifying me for them is my dad brought home one of my chickens two weeks ago saying she broke her toe and she needed help. It only took 2 days for half her body to become paralyzed (I also made a post about this with vids) I took her to the only vet we have (lives 4+ hours away) and she was diagnosed with mareks. We had her put down that day especially since it was quickly spreading to her respiratory and she couldn’t breathe well. I really loved that chicken and don’t want to lose more she was in my house while I took care of her. And now I’m so scared the babies might or could pick it up. I’m assuming at this point that all my adult chickens have it? But I don’t know if the babies can handle it right now especially the silkie babies. I also have button quail and a pheasant in my house that I’m scared they could get it too. Any thoughts? Sorry again for the rollercoster of a post I’m just so worried.
On April 25 me and my friend drove 10 hours and two states over to pick up some show quality silkie chicks (I already have two silkies a hen and roo but they are tractor supply quality). We met up with the breeder and saw the babies that hatched that morning. I ended up choosing 4 chicks ($50 each). Two showgirls, a black one and a white one, as well as two bearded babies a black and a buff.
The 4 silkie chicks are in a cardboard box as a brooder and they got the older chicks heat lamp (older chicks are already all good with room temp). I noticed it only took a few days for the wet sneezes I saw the older chicks doing to spread to the silkie babies. Then starting 3 days ago their necks started getting crazy. One babies neck is shedding skin like a snake but is still soft movable skin (I was putting coconut oil on but I was worried oil was making it worse so I switched to bag balm) their are also like five very tiny wounds on the back of the white ones neck. Looks like she might have been getting pecked a bit (never caught one in the act).
Then there is the black showgirl. She’s the one I’m worrying about most. She’s practically the same size she was when she hatched while the other silkies even the other showgirl are outgrowing her. She’s not lethargic and she’s a good eater and drinker but I have never felt her crop full it’s always so empty and bony and while holding her her breathing has a clicking to it when she breaths in. Idk if there is liquid in her lungs or what that entails. If
Then there is her neck, it’s thick skinned, dry, and rough like old leather that has sat in the sun very different from the intensive shedding her sib seems to be going through. (Sadly I didn’t take a pic of the black ones neck pre bag balm so the skin does look much better in the pic then it was even 12 hrs ago.
Okay so I know this post is a lil crazy and all over the place but I’m just so nervous and there are so many different factors at play I wanted to make sure I covered everything.
One last thing that’s terrifying me for them is my dad brought home one of my chickens two weeks ago saying she broke her toe and she needed help. It only took 2 days for half her body to become paralyzed (I also made a post about this with vids) I took her to the only vet we have (lives 4+ hours away) and she was diagnosed with mareks. We had her put down that day especially since it was quickly spreading to her respiratory and she couldn’t breathe well. I really loved that chicken and don’t want to lose more she was in my house while I took care of her. And now I’m so scared the babies might or could pick it up. I’m assuming at this point that all my adult chickens have it? But I don’t know if the babies can handle it right now especially the silkie babies. I also have button quail and a pheasant in my house that I’m scared they could get it too. Any thoughts? Sorry again for the rollercoster of a post I’m just so worried.
