Why are they dying?? Very upset! Lost another, new question! HELP!

[chickengrl]

Chickenpox,
Hang in there. You can't always know about these things. My guess is that the hen did have a respiratory illness at some point and recovered and is a carrier. She could have also been perfectly healthy and picked up a bug at the show. Try not to be hard on yourself. You are not the first that brought a bird into your flock that might have been sick and for sure you will not be the last. So sorry you are losing your chicks. That's truly hard!

 

[ChickenPox]

Thank you guys so much for all the hugs and well wishes. I lost another last night and two more were looking puny when I went to bed. I fully expected to find them dead this morning. BUT the two were alive! They still looked lethargic, but they were alive. And then I checked in on the oldest one......the only one left from the original 4 and there was COPIOUS amounts of blood in his stool!!! WHY it did not show before I started treatment for the cocci I don't know. This afternoon, the two that were fading are much perkier!

I never once saw a bloody stool before I started the Sulmet. Heck, there wasn't even any diarrhea in the dying chicks. Everybody pooped normally until I started the antibiotics. Then there was so much blood! I'm surprised the one isn't acting more sick. But he's acting normal. I know it's all his because he's in by himself since his brothers died.

This has been a learning experience for sure. I feel awful that 8 chicks had to die before I found something that worked. I just hope that the worst is over and that the babies will continue to thrive!

 

[honeydoll]

ChickenPox you did a great job. Illness is like that, sometimes it can "hide" and then suddenly you get full force symptoms. Glad you found the culprit. Good work!

Carolyn

 

[renovationmom]

Quote:
Very good point. I am new at this myself, and am going through the same thing right now. I purchased 5 mature silkie hens, and lost all but one to an respiratory illness(not sure which one) It looks like I have a carrier in my own healthy flock, because not one of them became infected. Any eggs which hatched from the infected hens, the chicks were also infected. My chicks that have hatched from my flock, have been exposed, and are fine. I know the loss is hard, it has been for me also, but I have to think that those I have lost were weak, and just could not deal with any illness they would become exposed to.