baby chicks dying please help!!!

[Wyorp Rock]

I would decrease the brooder temp or raise the lamp up a little. Spread out wings, to me looks too hot. The other one is in the corner, avoiding the heat - or that's what the picture looks like.
In the other photo, the bigger chicks look like they are avoiding heat as well.

Hock walking can be a sign of B2 deficiency. I would give those. Eliminate the milk and make a runny mash of chick starter to give them. It could be from shipping stress/rough handling in the mail, genetics, etc. All you can do is keep trying.

 

[sehfergy]

yes indeed, i’ve been working on getting the temp right so will keep trying. i put up a little visor too just now for them to get under as well. i’ll try the mash idea, thsnks!

 

[sehfergy]

I would decrease the brooder temp or raise the lamp up a little. Spread out wings, to me looks too hot. The other one is in the corner, avoiding the heat - or that's what the picture looks like.
In the other photo, the bigger chicks look like they are avoiding heat as well.

Hock walking can be a sign of B2 deficiency. I would give those. Eliminate the milk and make a runny mash of chick starter to give them. It could be from shipping stress/rough handling in the mail, genetics, etc. All you can do is keep trying.
View attachment 1698242

thoughts about how long it takes for the riboflavin deficiency to improve? symptoms started on day 4 after hatching. today is day 7, started therapy day 4. they are stable, not getting worse but not much difference.

one will walk but not as much as is normal. the other really can’t/won’t walk much at all. i want to give them a fair chance but also don’t want to make them suffer. your insights are greatly appreciated.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

thoughts about how long it takes for the riboflavin deficiency to improve? symptoms started on day 4 after hatching. today is day 7, started therapy day 4. they are stable, not getting worse but not much difference.

one will walk but not as much as is normal. the other really can’t/won’t walk much at all. i want to give them a fair chance but also don’t want to make them suffer. your insights are greatly appreciated.

Generally you should see improvement in a few days if it's a vitamin deficiency.
With shipped chicks, it's very hard to know what's going on with them. Sometimes vitamin therapy does help, but other times chicks fail to thrive for whatever reason.

Are they legs splayed or spraddled at all? You can try putting your chick in a chick chair to see if that helps it strengthen the legs. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/versions-of-chick-chairs-please.1166308/

Can it eat/drink on it's own?

 

[sehfergy]

Generally you should see improvement in a few days if it's a vitamin deficiency.
With shipped chicks, it's very hard to know what's going on with them. Sometimes vitamin therapy does help, but other times chicks fail to thrive for whatever reason.

Are they legs splayed or spraddled at all? You can try putting your chick in a chick chair to see if that helps it strengthen the legs. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/versions-of-chick-chairs-please.1166308/

Can it eat/drink on it's own?

they are eating & drinking some, but it’s hard to tell if it’s enough. when we supplement w/ one w/ the dropper he/she takes it enthusiastically, the other not so much. i’ve seen each of them both eating & drinking at the dishes in the brooder, but they are weak & can’t move around easily. i guess i’ve been lucky w/ my past clutches, i’ve never had issues like this. had a 1 week old chick w/ riboflavin deficiency a few years ago & w/ hand feeding she got better over about a week. i just wish i knew what was going on so i could at least know if my interventions were on target.

i’ve been getting the very immobile one out & doing leg stretches & such. i though maybe he was spraddled but it’s not consistent & only one leg. i did try the leg tether yesterday but it made it worse not better. thanks for your advice

 

[sehfergy]

well, we lost one of them, the 4th one. he went down hill today. i hope he didn’t suffer. 19 healthy chicks & still nursing the last sick one. he is holding his own. we’ll see how things go.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry.
Is it one particular breed that you are losing or a mix?

 

[Lee Nelson]

Wyorp Rock asked a great question. If all your other chicks are healthy it could be a problem with that breed. Several years ago I ordered chicks from a hatchery out west, and I lost all my silkies from the mixed package I bought. I would come down and another one was dead till I lost all five. I called the hatchery and they said it probably was a defect in the breed so they gave me money back. It sounds like you know how to raise chicks, but I will ask the obvious. Did you dip their beaks in water and add some sugar to it? Sometimes I even double dip just to make sure. Did you use medicated chick feed or starter if you did not have them vaccinated for coccidiosis?

 

[sehfergy]

I'm sorry.
Is it one particular breed that you are losing or a mix?

we lost 4 dark cornish, the one sick one left is dark cornish-he looks pretty good but is lame-he can’t walk. had chick shoes on for 2 days, took them off & toes not curled but still can’t walk. his legs aren’t out to the side so not sure if spraddle or just weak. i thought i’d try a chair, but not sure at all what i’m doing.

how long in the chair? how many times a day? are there other things i can do to strengthen his legs? should i try leg hobbles instead?

 

[sehfergy]

chicks were immunized so no medicated feed. no diarrhea. i’ve been giving vitamins/lytes/mash/brewer’s yeast every 3 hours w/ a dropper, the one still alive is doing well except he can’t walk (see reply message above).

2 died over the weekend, they were too far gone i guess. 2 others died last week 12 hours after arrival , looked normal initially, died very quickly (all dark cornish). 4 dead on arrival of 2 different other breeds, probably cold & shipping stress.