2 chicks down & I’m worried about the rest! Help!

[CayugaMama]

pictures that show how I do it.
How to Send a Bird for a Necropsy in California

Thank you so much!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry for your loss.
That's a long way to ship chicks during summer heat - from Ohio to Tx. You may want to consider ordering from a hatchery that is closer next time.
I've ordered from Meyer several times with no problems but I usually get chicks within 2 days and they were shipped when temps were cool.

Stress of shipping can take chicks out quickly. It's possible you have a bad hatch as well, but I do think shipping, temps while being shipped (how they were handled too) and possibly brooder temps should be considered as well.

I have yet to see anyone ask for photos of chicks, poop, brooder set-up, etc. If you have photos you can share, that may be helpful.
I would keep the warm side of the brooder around 90F and keep food/water on the cool side - let the cool side be as cold as possible.

Is your chick starter fresh? What's the mill date?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Yes, I always leave the heat source on just one side to give the chicks options. The sick ones seemed to want to lay just in the middle.
I feel like I have always heard they need to be in 95 until 1 week, so it is very interesting to find so many saying the contrary! I will take that into consideration for future batches.
Thank you for the necropsy info!

Yes. I feel like the hatcheries always say 95-99, somewhere in that range. I just tried to keep it in the mid-90s. Putting them against your skin is a good idea too

Shipped chicks need more supportive care but probably for not more than a couple days.
It is important to remember that chicken chicks aren't that fragile.
I've seen hen hatched chicks running around in 40-50F temps the better part of the day and occasionally run back under the hen when they felt chilled.
Why don't those chicks die if they aren't kept over 90F?

They aren't that fragile.

 

[CayugaMama]

I'm sorry for your loss.
That's a long way to ship chicks during summer heat - from Ohio to Tx. You may want to consider ordering from a hatchery that is closer next time.
I've ordered from Meyer several times with no problems but I usually get chicks within 2 days and they were shipped when temps were cool.

Stress of shipping can take chicks out quickly. It's possible you have a bad hatch as well, but I do think shipping, temps while being shipped (how they were handled too) and possibly brooder temps should be considered as well.

I have yet to see anyone ask for photos of chicks, poop, brooder set-up, etc. If you have photos you can share, that may be helpful.
I would keep the warm side of the brooder around 90F and keep food/water on the cool side - let the cool side be as cold as possible.

Is your chick starter fresh? What's the mill date?

Thank you for the input!
Yes, thank you! We addressed that earlier in the thread, and I will be ordering from Ideal Poultry next time. They are about 2 hours from me.
On the temps, The cool side is around 75 and the warm side is around 93 currently. Do you think that should be sufficient? I always leave one side open - so that would have always been around 74-78. The warm side has been between 90-97 since day one. Do any of those temps seem too extreme when they have have both options in the brooder?
I will post photos of the sick chicks, poop, and cage setup shortly! Thank you!
I'm not certain what the chick starter mill date is, but it is fresh and I will also include a photo of the dietary info. The first chick that died never had the feed though. It had only had grow gel upon arrival and then just went down him from there with a loss of appetite. Could it have been the grow gel?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you for the input!
Yes, thank you! We addressed that earlier in the thread, and I will be ordering from Ideal Poultry next time. They are about 2 hours from me.
On the temps, The cool side is around 75 and the warm side is around 93 currently. Do you think that should be sufficient? I always leave one side open - so that would have always been around 74-78. The warm side has been between 90-97 since day one. Do any of those temps seem too extreme when they have have both options in the brooder?
I will post photos of the sick chicks, poop, and cage setup shortly! Thank you!
I'm not certain what the chick starter mill date is, but it is fresh and I will also include a photo of the dietary info. The first chick that died never had the feed though. It had only had grow gel upon arrival and then just went down him from there with a loss of appetite. Could it have been the grow gel?

Cool side sounds good.
97 is getting pretty warm. I usually aim for 90 the first couple of days when getting chicks shipped, thereafter I may reduce it more, but I use a heating pad cave, so essentially all the heat is just in the cave, not in the whole brooder if that makes sense. Most of the time the chicks are moving about, they do take quick naps under there during the day, but don't stay under heat except at night.

Had to look up grow gel, never have used it. I wouldn't think it would contribute to anything unless it wasn't hydrated properly.

 

[Cami Su]

I'm going to do my own research on this. Never heard of it.

It is why people are giving up their teflon pans. If you burn one, the result can be what they call Teflon Flu. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polym...olymer fume fever or fluoropolymer,C (842 °F).