I just recently became a chicken mom so I'm still new to a lot of this. Sadly we lost our first chicken last night. Gotta say, I wasn't nearly prepared for how devastating that was going to be! My best guess is she became overheated, since she hasn't shown any signs of illness. We're in Texas and yesterday was our first triple digit day. We've been giving our birds electrolytes to help combat the heat, but maybe it just wasn't enough? When she went to bed last night she appeared perfectly fine. However, I have 3 chickens sharing a coop and since birth these 3 have refused to sleep anywhere except right on top of each other in a single nesting box. This chick always seemed to be on the bottom of the pile, so I'm thinking the heat and lack of ventilation under there got to her. Thankfully it appears she passed in her sleep, but I'm worried about the other 2 chickens in that coop. Just to be on the safe side, we started treating their water with Corrid this morning. Any suggestions on what else might cause a seemingly healthy 11 week old chicken to die in their sleep? Also, do you recommend I disinfect the coop? Thanks!
I think You are doing the right thing. Cocci is the leading cause of chick deaths. Good luck and have fun...
If there haven't been bloody stools don't give corid as there's no need and you're treating them for something they don't have. Can you post a pic of the coop? I would put them on the roost after dark at the very least and close off the nest box to prevent them from using it until they're old enough to lay. You don't want them piling up together in a confined space in the heat.
