2 more Polish Chickens acting odd

[spish]

i found this on a bycers page (farmer kitty)

Molasses Flush for chicken that has been poisened.-From Miss Prissy

Molasses flush is 1 pint molasses per 5 gallons water given over a period of 8 hours withhold all other food or water.
The break down is -
(1 PINT = 2 CUPS)
2 cups to 5 gallons water
1 cup to 2.5 gallons of water
1/2 cup to 1.25 gallons of water
1/4 cup to 2 quarts water
4 tablespoons to 1 quart water
The molasses acts as a laxative by pulling water into the intestines and flushing it out.
I would mix it by the quart.

 

[GottaLuvChicks]

Thanks Lydia!

I just talked to the state lab guy Dr. Miller. He is SO nice! I am taking the 3 bodies up to him at 11am for him to do necropsies on them (for free!). He said it sounds like botulism as well, but he wants to check and at least rule out other things. He told me to get the healthy ones out of that run asap (heading out to do that in a few), and to disinfect the entire coop and run, being very careful to check for other dead things. He said botulism can result not only from dead animals/bad meat, but also from dead vegetation. He did say doing a flush of their systems is not a bad thing just in case, but it is one of those things that if they have it, they usually either die or just get over it (unless I want to spend a few hundred bucks on shots that may or may not save them).

So I'm off to get dressed, gather up dead chickens, and head up to the lab. Wish me luck that this is something containable and I can save the rest of the chickens!!

 

[GottaLuvChicks]

Thanks!! I am going to get that set up in a quarantine setup for the 2 that are left as soon as I am home from the lab....


Quote:

 

[Miss Lydia]

We'll be thinking about you. and waiting to hear what is going on.

 

[GottaLuvChicks]

Well took the dead birds up to the lab. The doctor was awesome. He said it sounds like a case of botulism as well, but he is going to run a bunch of tests and let me know. He is also going ot send me a copy of his report, and gave me the name of a great avian vet in the area. So it should be a few days before I hear anything.

He did suggest completely cleaning out both coops and both runs as much as possible. So that got done tonight (while the snow started to fall - ugh). He also suggested keeping the 2 healthy ones in the coop and OUT of the run until the test results come back, so they are unhappily locked up with plenty of water and food. I tossed a bunch of scratch in their new bedding for them to play with, so that should keep them busy tonight and tomorrow.

So, as soon as I know something, I will let you guys know. Thanks for all the thoughts and good wishes!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Glad to hear your going to get some answers, I asked you this earlier but I know you had alot on your mind, do you have neighbors that might use poison? Or anyone in the area that might not want you to have chickens that might do something like poison your chickens, I'd hate to think but it does happen.

 

[GottaLuvChicks]

No, my neighbors actually think the chickens are cool. I asked them about the crowing, and it's no big deal. We live in a very rural area with lots of farms, so hearing chickens crow is nothing new in this area. The runs are pretty far from the neighbors, so I don't think anything they may be using could cause an issue.

I DID find some bones of some sort in the run, so maybe the kids threw out some meat thinking it was safe (we always give them table scraps), and it went bad? Kinda makes sense with everything I have read and listening to the doc.

 

[Miss Lydia]

well thats a relief, I was just thinking about a mouse having eaten poison and maybe gotten into the run, well just keep us up dated please. And glad to hear you 2 are still doing good. By the way I have a cousin who lives in Dillsburg.

small world huh

 

[GottaLuvChicks]

Quote:
Really? We are very active in the fire department here, so we might know who it is. PM me the name

 

[GottaLuvChicks]

Ok, somehow missed a call from the doctor with some results...

He said that the chickens did have severe intestinal problems that COULD be botulism, but he thinks they also had necrotic enteritis?? Of course I am reading up on it big time right now, and I am trying to figure out where in the heck they could have gotten it! But the symptoms I am reading sound right for what they went through. Hopefully the others either don't get it or are healthy enough to work through it. Thank goodness I just did the big time cleaning of the coops tonight, as the other 2 are locked in there for the night.

He is doing some tests, and told me to put the birds I have left on medicated feed for awhile. Of COURSE I just went and got new feed tonight, but it's just the regular Purina layer feed. Guess I get to go travel in the snow tomorrow to get them the medicated feed...He said he will be calling me tomorrow with more results, so hopefully I won't miss that call.