Hi Everyone,
We picked up 70 white rock broiler day-olds from a reputable hatchery on March 8th. We have them in a partially insulated shed, insulated floor, sectioned off for their size, with three heat lamps. Bedding is pine shavings. We are in Ontario, Canada, so it's not exactly warm outside, but their space seems fine and they're moving about, eating and drinking.
When they were about a week to 10 days old, I thought I heard a few of them coughing. It sounded like a little cough or sneeze. I thought it was odd. We've raised broilers before, without any health issues, and these ones seemed fine otherwise, so I just left it to be monitored.
Now there are more making that noise, some even seem to "gurgle." Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to be stopping them from eating and drinking (and pooping). I haven't noticed any nasal or eye discharge, though one looked like it was puffing its cheeks while it was breathing.
Any ideas? The only thing we've done differently this time than in the past was put them outside as soon as they arrived, instead of having them in the house. There were so many of them, we didn't want to deal with the smell, and felt more organized with our current set up.
We picked up 70 white rock broiler day-olds from a reputable hatchery on March 8th. We have them in a partially insulated shed, insulated floor, sectioned off for their size, with three heat lamps. Bedding is pine shavings. We are in Ontario, Canada, so it's not exactly warm outside, but their space seems fine and they're moving about, eating and drinking.
When they were about a week to 10 days old, I thought I heard a few of them coughing. It sounded like a little cough or sneeze. I thought it was odd. We've raised broilers before, without any health issues, and these ones seemed fine otherwise, so I just left it to be monitored.
Now there are more making that noise, some even seem to "gurgle." Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to be stopping them from eating and drinking (and pooping). I haven't noticed any nasal or eye discharge, though one looked like it was puffing its cheeks while it was breathing.
Any ideas? The only thing we've done differently this time than in the past was put them outside as soon as they arrived, instead of having them in the house. There were so many of them, we didn't want to deal with the smell, and felt more organized with our current set up.