Chicks dying- no sign of illness- help!

[Debbie292d]

Well aside from maybe us having exposed them, they had no exposure unless it was from RK’s 4 I did buy as they do not vaccinate.
Idk.

This is a tractor, it moves all over. Where it was no chickens had been on. Another one of the baffling things. Lol

If it’s cocci it def is odd on how it affects birds.

There are different strains of coccidiosis, and I recall reading long ago that there are areas where it's stronger than others. It's in the grass, the dirt, etc. You could just be where it's a little higher.

Young chicks get it from eating each other's poop. Thus why if folks don't keep the brooders clean and dry, the chicks will surely get sick.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Coccidiosis is found in the soil and in the poop. Even if chicks are in a brooder and have never touched ground, they can have an outbreak/overload (Called Coccidiosis which is an overload of Coccidia (Oocysts) which is a Protozoa) just by drinking water or eating feed that has been pooped in (or eating poop, chicks eat poop too).
There are 9 strains of Coccidia that affect Poultry only 2 of those strains cause blood in the poop, so just looking for bloody poop doesn't always help.

Treating with Amprolium (Corid) won't hurt even if they are not dying from Coccidiosis. The drug is mild and is a B1 (Thiamine) analogue and blocks the Thiamine transporter of the Eimeria Species (Species of Coccidia that affects Poultry/Chickens), basically it helps to starve out/reduce the number of Coccidia which in helps to allow the birds' immune system to start building resistance. (There are other Species of Coccidia that affect Turkeys, Dogs, Cats, Cattle, Horses, etc. etc.)

Some chicks are able to "recover" without treatment and build resistance, but Coccidiosis (overload of Coccidia) can damage the intestinal tract which in time can also cause other issues during the lifetime of the bird such as infection, reduced ability to absorb nutrients in food, slow growth, reduction in production, unthriftiness, etc.

I'd make sure the birds are staying warm, if you are providing treatment, give fresh daily and also keep water stations clean. General tidiness, but don't go overboard, they do need exposure to poop.

You don't mention having any losses since the thread started a couple of days ago, but have made some changes correct - additional heat, seeing that they have good access to water (hydration) and are eating. This adjustment may have been all that needed done to have prevented more losses.

In case you need dosing.
Liquid Corid dose is 2tsp or Powdered Corid Dose is 1 1/2tsp per gallon of water given for 5-7 days as the only source of drinking water.
Do not add any extra vitamins/electrolytes that contain B1(Thiamine) to food or water during the course of treatment.

Fwiw - unless you order from a hatchery and specify you want chicks vaccinated for Coccidiosis, none are vaccinated for it. Depending on the vaccine each hatchery uses or if you purchase your own and vaccinate, protection may be only for 3-6 strains and some provide moderate "protection" for only up to 5wks, some longer, the goal is to help the birds build resistance through exposure.

Well aside from maybe us having exposed them, they had no exposure unless it was from RK’s 4 I did buy as they do not vaccinate.

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

We lost no chicks yesterday, but today we lost two.
I am not sure if it was bc of the suspected Cocci or because we dropped down to 20's last night & with already weak chicks, I'm sure that's rough. One we lost I am surprised it actually lasted as long as it did. We will drop down to 20's again tonight but we've battened it down as much as we can without changing things completely or a fire hazard.

I got some medicated feed for the new hatches. I'm also boosting their immunity with some treated water. As well as the rest of the flock.

Pretty sure it is coccidiosis as we now have a hen that is lethargic, diarrhea poop, and drooping wings. She is normally our escape artist.

So IF that is the case, we have had cocci rare up in the past with a hen every once in awhile.
Our latest one was actually 2wks ago. Was our oldest girl & thought it was the normal thing they get once they're older.

Going to have to figure out how to treat the area, as it's staying too damp & now it's cold so bad combo for the area.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

We lost no chicks yesterday, but today we lost two.
I am not sure if it was bc of the suspected Cocci or because we dropped down to 20's last night & with already weak chicks, I'm sure that's rough. One we lost I am surprised it actually lasted as long as it did. We will drop down to 20's again tonight but we've battened it down as much as we can without changing things completely or a fire hazard.

I got some medicated feed for the new hatches. I'm also boosting their immunity with some treated water. As well as the rest of the flock.

Pretty sure it is coccidiosis as we now have a hen that is lethargic, diarrhea poop, and drooping wings. She is normally our escape artist.

So IF that is the case, we have had cocci rare up in the past with a hen every once in awhile.
Our latest one was actually 2wks ago. Was our oldest girl & thought it was the normal thing they get once they're older.

Going to have to figure out how to treat the area, as it's staying too damp & now it's cold so bad combo for the area.

I'm sorry you've lost a couple of more.

Not being warm enough could contribute to the losses. I've had chicks when the temps were in the high teens, upper 20s and they did fine, but I used a heating pad cave for them, do the best you can to try to keep them warm or if possible, can you bring them inside for the night?

What is treated water?

If you have an adult hen that is having issues, it might be Coccidiosis, but I'd investigate that futher to make sure she's not having problems with worms, mites/lice, a crop issue or something reproductive going on. Generally adult birds have built resistance to the strains that are in their environment and if healthy, Coccidiosis is usually not an issue. They can however be affected/overloaded (Coccidiosis) when they have an underlying condition or illness, their system is not able to handle everything at once. If you do suspect that she has Coccidiosis, then treating her with Corid asap is very important.

 

[BlessedChaosHomestead]

I'm sorry you've lost a couple of more.

Not being warm enough could contribute to the losses. I've had chicks when the temps were in the high teens, upper 20s and they did fine, but I used a heating pad cave for them, do the best you can to try to keep them warm or if possible, can you bring them inside for the night?

What is treated water?

If you have an adult hen that is having issues, it might be Coccidiosis, but I'd investigate that futher to make sure she's not having problems with worms, mites/lice, a crop issue or something reproductive going on. Generally adult birds have built resistance to the strains that are in their environment and if healthy, Coccidiosis is usually not an issue. They can however be affected/overloaded (Coccidiosis) when they have an underlying condition or illness, their system is not able to handle everything at once. If you do suspect that she has Coccidiosis, then treating her with Corid asap is very important.

Our hen may just have been a one off. She passed sadly.

We have a reoccurring pattern with our 2yr old hens, usually ones of higher production rate.
They will have a dirty butt, then we notice they’re lethargic, not laying, not eating, then liquidy poop.
We’ve only had one recover from that and it was in late spring/early summer.
We isolated her, gave her ACV in her water, maybe some chicken vitamins, maybe something else. And about a week later she perked up & was fine.
All the others that have done this either passed on their own or we culled them.

We’ve thought it was reproductive issues.

At this point I don’t know. I just know this is getting old, doesn’t have signs of normal illness. And now I’ve lost our first hatched hen who was also a favorite because she escaped all the time & put herself back up. She was our yard chicken basically. And a fiesty one at that. Her sister is the one who survived in spring.