chicken problems

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I raise meat birds (cornish chickens). Today I went out to the pen and saw a few of them barely moving and if they did they were walking on their joints any ideas on what's wrong with them and how to fix it?
2. question I also have a few birds that are putting there head down and shutting their eyes what do you think is caused by i'm kinda thing respiratory problem any ideas or advice?

 

[jewels621]

How old are they?

 

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7 weeks

 

[jewels621]

Cornish meaties are prone to legs problems as they get close to butchering time. Their legs can't support their weight, especially if they are big birds. They are also prone to Congestive Heart Failure at the later stages of their life. Have you weighed them or do you have an idea of an average weight that their at right now? If you're starting to see these problems (leg issues and respiratory issues) I would consider butchering them soon. I think it would be better to process early and have a smaller bird than to lose the bird and not get any meat out of it at all. They're too much work to lose out on even one!

How have you been feeding them? Some people feed with 24 hour access to food, and some do 12 hrs on/12 hours off. The latter helps to grow the bird a little slower and thus help to prevent the leg and CHF issues.

I hope you are able to reap the rewards of your meat-bird raising. It is so worth it! Good luck and holler if you need more info. There are many people with such good experience here!

 

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They weight 6 to 7 pounds. i've been feeding them 24/7 but i'm going to change tomorrow put them on a program where they will have 12 hours on feed and 12 hours off feed. thank you so much!