Molasses flushing?....Sick chicks becoming worse! :( Need help ASAP!

[77horses]

I had another post about how my chickens (my rooster, a mother hen, and 3 young chicks) ate quite a bit of moldy feed that got wet from the rain.

Well, they were fine and I was convinced that it wasn't gonna affect them. They were acting normal and healthy as ever. Until a couple days ago, I noticed that the three baby chicks have been acting lethargic...feathers were all fluffed up, sad, drown-out peeping noises instead of their usual high-pitched and energetic peeping, slowness, etc. One of the baby chicks, the youngest, seems to be the worst...She often stands in one spot with her head tuck in her wings/back and very slow. They all still eat and drink and can walk around and stand up fine, but it seems to have been getting progressively worse over the past couple days.

Ever since I found out that the food was moldy and it was bad for chickens to eat it, I got rid of it all and bought some brand-new grower feed. They ate and have been eating that fine and always have fresh water available.

So I think that the way the chicks are acting lethargic and everything must have something to do with the moldy feed...

I've heard that molasses can be used to flush out their digestive system and treat infections from moldy feed. If this is true, how much should I use per gallon?
Are there any other solutions that I could use?

Thanks and any other information is appreciated!



(UPDATER: The three baby chicks are getting worse...Please see my post, which is a couple posts below this one, about it! Help!)

 

[babsbag]

Personally, I would do the Corid for cocci. It is easy to treat, common for them to have, and deadly. If you treat them and they don't have it, no big deal. They will be fine. But if you don't treat them. THEY WILL DIE. It is a 5 day treatment. You get corid at a feed store. This is the most likely what your chicks have. No time to waste. Treat them.

 

[MotherJean]

Thank you Babs. This is sound advice and I couldn't agree more.

 

[MotherJean]

If you decide to treat for cocci, use Sulmet or Corrid. You can't "make do" with medicated feed. It does not contain enough amprolium to kill an active cocci infection.

 

[babsbag]

With mine I noticed a change in about 36 hours. First night in the house to see what was going on. Started Corid the next morning. One more night in the house and then back in with the flock. I always treat everyone when I get a sick one just because they share the water ( when they aren't drinking the goat's water).

I am glad you got the meds, and that my memory was wrong, happens a lot as I get older. If you don't need the meds now you will at one point if you keep chickens. I can almost guarantee that.

Good luck.

 

[77horses]

Thanks everyone.

I think the chicks are getting better, but my stepfathers caring for them so I can't see for myself how much they've gotten better. But I think the weakest one is doing much better because I called and reminded my stepfather to make sure the youngest one was in the coop with the rest before dark, since she was too weak to even climb the ramp so she was often left outside and hid under the coop unless someone put her in, but he said she was already in the coop under momma hen so she made it up the ramp herself. Which means she must be getting better!

 

[MotherJean]

Fiberart57 posted this on another thread back in March:

"The medicated chick feed is amprolium for coccidiosis, an intestinal parasite that most chickens have. As they get older they become tolerant of cocci in their digestive systems. As babies they can easily become overcome with cocci and die as a result of a massive infestation. Amprolium helps control the amount they have until they build an immunity to them. By 12 or 16 weeks, or until they start laying, they should be fed medicated feed and then be able to be weaned off the amprolium."


So...when your medicated feed got moldy, you tossed it and bought non-medicated feed, which no longer helped to control the cocci protozoa that your chicks were exposed to. It's also important to note that not all cases of coccidiosis show the symptom of blood in the droppings. The other symptoms of lethargy, decreased intake of food and water, and diarrhea are almost always present. I believe you said your chicks exhibited all of these symptoms...including some signs of blood. Coccidiosis is common...far more common than botulism from moldy feed. It might have just been your bad luck to have an outbreak of cocci occur at the same time you found you were giving moldy feed.

If you decide to treat your chicks for cocci you should use Sulmet or Corrid (available at most feed stores). These drugs are in the sulfa drug family. It will not hurt your chicks. Whether or not it will help at this point is anybody's guess. You should understand that diseases that might take a couple of weeks to kill an adult bird, can kill a month old chick in a matter of a few days. I hope this works for you and that it's not too late.

 

[justbugged]

Here is a post I made on another thread, it applies here also. I hope that you can save your chicks.
I am quoting myself.

I swear when things like this happen,it is the hardest part of having and hatching chicks. Everyone has to answer the question for themselves. I have had troubles with a chick after hatch, and I know how tough it is when you know how hard the chick is fighting for life. But somethings are just not fixable. A Chick needs to be up and moving around and fluffy with the first day. If it is crippled and just hanging on the next day, it is very unlikely that it will ever be a functioning chick. Chickens have to have feet that work. I know that there will always be someone that can take a chick that is on it's last legs, or is crippled and somehow make it live, for a long time. But ask your self if you really have the time and resources to care for a special needs chicken that will need to live in the house with you for the rest of its life.

Part of being good flock owners is knowing when to put your babies out of the misery, that they are in. We can give this gift to our animals.
I don't believe they (animals) have the sense of forever that humans have. All they understand is that they hurt, and can't do the things that they were meant to do. I know this will upset a few people here on the forum, but I also have read about a few of us being able to make that very hard choice for the animals that God has placed in our care. This is also part of caring for the animals as much as trying everything else we and others can think of to save them. I often contemplate and marvel at how strong life force can be, and of course how weak it can be when we need it the most.

Now I know that I am going to piss someone off really bad. So that person should STOP READING NOW! But here is how I do it with a chick this young. You can put it in a plastic container with a washcloth and put it all into the freezer. The little chick will just go to sleep.

Having chickens as a pet is not the same as having dogs and cats.

Some of my quote is clearly directed at another BYC member, but I think that it applies here also.

 

[babsbag]

It is easy to get overwhelmed, and I understand that. But I just like to look for the easy answer first. If after 2 days of Corid I don't see some improvement then I continue the treatment but start to think about something else. In the young birds it is just so common that it is always my first thought.

I must have a super duper dose of it in my soil as my chicks get it even with medicated feed. I am watching a goat kid right now as well, wondering if that is where we are headed. I haven't actually seen him poop, but I see some stuff on his back legs that I don't like. I confined him tonight so I will see what I see in the morning. Hopefully nice little goatie berries

But at least, thanks to my chicks, I have the corid on hand.

 

[PoultryPedia]

Have you seen any more poops that looked like they have blood in them? I think it is possible in some cases for an animal with cocci to not necessarily show much blood in poop, though, anyways???
I haven't been able to find any meds for cocci in regular feed stores except in large $30 container. If your feed store doesn't have any affordable, you could just buy more medicated chick starter, though.

I do think fungal condition VERY LIKELY since they had moldy feed a number of days. Mine only had moldy food 1 or 2 times, in addition to having a slightly moldy corner in coop. I expect a number of days of moldy feed would VERY likely cause fungal condition.
Fungal conditions are EXTREMELY hard to identify and diagnose, per all I've read. However, given your knowledge of their moldy feed along with symptoms, I think it's a strong suspicion in this case. It might be in combination with cocci, too, though.