So I got fifty chicks from a hatchery May 20th, and in the first 3 days lost one which wasn't surprising because they had just been air shipped and went through a lot of stress. Four weeks later all was still good, chicks were strong and healthy. At five weeks I noticed one chick was lame on one leg so I put him in his own box. When I researched the possible problem I determined it was either Marek's Disease or splay leg. I couldn't find anything else wrong with the bird and didnt know where they would catch Mareks from so I figured it probably did slip on the plastic under the shavings of the brooder. After a week he was better and strong so he was put with the rest again. At six weeks we moved them into their own area in the coop and that's when things got bad.
I never cleaned the area out completely because it was pretty clean from the last birds I had in there and they were all healthy. We gave them a Waterer that holds 5gallons of water and a large creep feeder for their feed. I put the heat lamp in too and released the babies that were soooooo happy to have more space. The next morning I found a body. So I put another lamp thinking maybe they got too cold, though they weren't crowding. A couple days later I found another body, but I figured it had fallen off the top roost cause I saw it there the eve before. Then I found two that were lame like the first and started worrying that it could be Mareks again. But they seemed weak and sick, not just lame. The one would eat and drink still, the other wasn't interested, and that night the one died, and the other was also dead about 12hrs later.
After those two the body count went up to 8 within a couple days. Every night I go into the coop and case them around to see if anyone seems slow or sick or weak or give me any concern that something's up, but they are all alert, peppy, and appear healthy, until the next morning when I find a body. The body always seems thin, but maybe that's from being stood on after death. I just found one this morning that is still alive, but hardly. He's in a box with a heat lamp because he felt cold. They have a bulb in the coop, but no one ever sleeps under it, they like to cluster in the corners.
What could be killing my chicks? And so quickly.
We noticed that the adult birds free ranging in the yard have been sand bathing a lot, my husband suggested mites could be killing them. Is that possible? I can't see anything on them, but I think I'm going to dust them anyway. Any suggestions on how to dust 37 7wk old chicks?
I also noticed a lot of Mosquitos in the coop. Could they kill my chicks?
HELP PLEASE!! I'm sick of finding a body every time I go into the coop!
Should I be giving them antibiotics?
I never cleaned the area out completely because it was pretty clean from the last birds I had in there and they were all healthy. We gave them a Waterer that holds 5gallons of water and a large creep feeder for their feed. I put the heat lamp in too and released the babies that were soooooo happy to have more space. The next morning I found a body. So I put another lamp thinking maybe they got too cold, though they weren't crowding. A couple days later I found another body, but I figured it had fallen off the top roost cause I saw it there the eve before. Then I found two that were lame like the first and started worrying that it could be Mareks again. But they seemed weak and sick, not just lame. The one would eat and drink still, the other wasn't interested, and that night the one died, and the other was also dead about 12hrs later.
After those two the body count went up to 8 within a couple days. Every night I go into the coop and case them around to see if anyone seems slow or sick or weak or give me any concern that something's up, but they are all alert, peppy, and appear healthy, until the next morning when I find a body. The body always seems thin, but maybe that's from being stood on after death. I just found one this morning that is still alive, but hardly. He's in a box with a heat lamp because he felt cold. They have a bulb in the coop, but no one ever sleeps under it, they like to cluster in the corners.
What could be killing my chicks? And so quickly.
We noticed that the adult birds free ranging in the yard have been sand bathing a lot, my husband suggested mites could be killing them. Is that possible? I can't see anything on them, but I think I'm going to dust them anyway. Any suggestions on how to dust 37 7wk old chicks?
I also noticed a lot of Mosquitos in the coop. Could they kill my chicks?
HELP PLEASE!! I'm sick of finding a body every time I go into the coop!
Should I be giving them antibiotics?
