5 week old chickens dying... no signs!

[BSFocht]

HELP! I have 41 5 week old chickens that I just put out from the garage 2 days ago. They were all fine last night when I put them in the house and today I have already had 8 dead! They are no signs of trauma, no signs of illness. They have access to food and water. What could it be and how can I keep it from spreading to the rest?

 

[cafarmgirl]

At their age and having just been put outside I would be very suspicious of coccidiosis. It certainly wouldn't hurt to treat them with a round of Corid, I would do so asap. If that's what this is you may well save the rest of them. It's a very fast killer but easily controlled with treatment provided it hasn't progessed to far.

 

[Eggcessive]

At their age and having just been put outside I would be very suspicious of coccidiosis. It certainly wouldn't hurt to treat them with a round of Corid, I would do so asap. If that's what this is you may well save the rest of them. It's a very fast killer but easily controlled with treatment provided it hasn't progessed to far.

X 2. Make sure they have chick-sized grit also if they are eating grass and bugs, or anything other than chicken crumbles. Corid dosage is 2 tsp liquid or 1.5 tsp of powder Corid (amprollium) per gallon of water for 5-7 days. Ampromed is another brand name in some stores,

 

[BSFocht]

I went out and treated the water with antibiotics and vitamins. We have lost one teenager before from coccidiosis but this didn't look like that. With them only being outdoors for two days I would think we would have seen bloody diarrhea in the garage and there isn't any. Hopefully whatever killed them, the antibiotics and vitamins will do the trick and we won't have any more deaths. I hate that they can die from something SO quickly without showing signs of being sick.

 

[BSFocht]

I will also make sure I mix some grit into their food tomorrow! Still learning and I feel so bad when what I don't know causes a death.

 

[Eggcessive]

If your chicks are only 5 weeks old, and there has been coccidiosis earlier, I would be suspicious of cocci. There is only blood in the stools with 2 of the 9 strains of cocci. At their age they may need to be treated for an outbreak, then again in 3 weeks at the preventative dose. From 11 to 20 weeks they will start to develop immunity, but they can still get it.

 

[BSFocht]

I don't know if it makes a difference but the earlier coccidiosus was in a group of 4 that we hatched in January. We lost one and the other 3 pulled through after a few days of antibiotics and water. The group that is dying now came through the mail and a few came from Tractor Supply. The ones in the mail had their Marek vaccination. We received them the first Friday of March. I will keep up with the treatment and pray for the best. Is there a way to rid your land of cocci?

 

[cafarmgirl]

I don't know if it makes a difference but the earlier coccidiosus was in a group of 4 that we hatched in January. We lost one and the other 3 pulled through after a few days of antibiotics and water. The group that is dying now came through the mail and a few came from Tractor Supply. The ones in the mail had their Marek vaccination. We received them the first Friday of March. I will keep up with the treatment and pray for the best. Is there a way to rid your land of cocci?

There is no way to rid your property of the coccidia protozoa, it lives in the soil. Ammonia is supposed ot kill it but there's not really any point in attempting to rid your property of it since more will always be carried in by wild birds or even tracked in on shoes from other property. However, chickens do develop immunity to the strains that are present in their environement. Chicks have not had enough time to develop immunity and birds new to your property can encounter a strain new to them that they are not immune to. BIrds that are ill with some other problem and whose immunity is lowered are also at risk. So one just has to keep a close eye on chicks and new birds and be ready to treat if they show symptoms.

 

[Eggcessive]

Cocci is in the ground period. Chicks should build up immunity to the strain in your yard gradually from age 9-20 weeks. When getting new chicks you probably should routinely do preventative treatments of Corid (lower dose) every 3 weeks after they hit the ground. Here is a nice article on cocci that may want to read: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/12/coccidiosis-what-backyard-chicken.html