CHICKS SUDDENLY DYING! Any thoughts or suggestions?

[ginnychick]

Our chicks were the picture of health, now one died last weekend and one this weekend! Background:

Last week our chicks wereabout 3 1/2 weeks old. The smallest chick, the Brahma, suddenly was down and having labored breathing.This happened in a matter of an hour! The chick had been the tenderest of the brood when we brought the 5 home, and we figured it was that she was not strong enough, but she had been acting and eating just fine!

Monday our LIR seemed lethargic and I was afraid she was going also. She somehow got better. Since then all 4 chicks seemed to be the picture of health - gaining weight, drinking and running to my hand if I offered them a bit of herbs.

Tonight our Barred Rock, again labored breathing and died within 15 minutes! She had been perfectly fine just an hour before. She was one of the biggest in the brood. Again the LIR who was out of it on Monday, also looked lethargic, but she somehow seems to be better agaiin.

What have we done, thoughts we have had:

We dusted all of them last week with wood ashes in case it was mites. I could not see active mite infestation, but just in case I bought Manna Natural Poultry Spray and sprayed the brooder after cleqning it, to help ward off any mites then put in the pine bark shavings.

I have put a tad bit of vitamins in their water since we lost the first chick last week, just in case they have some sort of deficiency from the medicated feed I have been giving them since we have had them 3 weeks.

They are in a brooder with a bulb. The temp has been around 78 degrees.

I have given them bits of dill, parsley, sprouted lentils and sprouted chia seed which they all love.

Done differently: last week our grandkids were over. Soon after they left the Brahma died. I did not know what to think. They ad not been handling them. I did close the door to the room they were in to keep our 2 year old grandson away from them.

Tonight I did the same thing. They all seemed fine, then within 15 mins. like I said they were basically dying! I feared the brooder might have gotten too hot or something, but they are able to scoot to the other corner of the brooder to be cool if they need to. Sp the heat could be an explanation, but seems far fetched.

Could they have worms? How do I tell?

Could they have coccidocis even though they are being fed the medicated food?

They seem to have okay poop,no runny noses and as I said running around seemingly healthy and happy. What is unexplainablle to us is that they seem to go downhilll in a matter of less than an hour! I would think that mites, worms, etc would start having them act droopy or sick for a time and not having them die so suddenly.

I've checked, we do not have a poultry veterinarian anywhere near us. I don't know if I could take one in to Rutgers to have it examined.

Please, any thoughts or suggestions you might have would be greatly appreciated!

Very sad chicken owner in Central NJ.

 

[LuvinChickens]

Labored breathing, my first thought is respiratory infection. A severe case can cause sudden death. If it is a respiratory infection, I would add a medicine called tetracycline to the water. 1/10 tsp per 2 gallons of water if using the powdered kind (I suggest the powdered kind). The water will have to be changed daily for 7 days and kept out of direct sunlight.

Coccidocis is unlikely. Symptoms include blood in the poo, birds will become extremely thin, birds may be seen hunched over and fluffed up, lethargic. Once you find a thin, hunched over, and fluffed up bird. Chances are the bird is at the end of its life. If you start immediate treatment, you might be able to save it. But I don't think your birds have coccidocis.

I'm sorry that I can't help much. I have never had anything like this happen.

 

[Michael Apple]

Washing hands before and after handling birds is important to prevent contagious diseases. Dusting with wood ash could definitely cause some respiratory distress. Giving them things like parsley, sprouted lentils, chia seed, could complicate problems in the intestinal tract at such a young age. Were the chicks absent from the brooder when you sprayed it? If so, where did you put them while you did it? For respiratory disease, it would be best to use Tylan souble powder or LS-50 soluble powder at 1 tsp per gallon of water every day for 5 days if it is something like CRD caused by Mycoplasma Gallisepticum.

 

[ginnychick]

Thank you Michael and LuvinChickens. I had not thought of a respiratory illness because I thought I would have seen a runny nose or them acting droppy,not eating for a while.... They seemed to be the picture of health until just suddenly they sat down, seemed to breathe heavily and then die.

Answers to Michael - I always wash my hands (funny, I had been doing it more to help prevent getting something from them, rather than spreading somethingto them!) Yes, all of them had wood ash spread on them last weekend since the Brahma died so suddenly and I desperately tried reading as to what it could be; so I guess they could have inhaled it. Are they too young? - they are about 4 - 4 1/2 weeks old, I got them when they were around 1 week old.

Something I had not mentioned is that the little Brahma when we first brought her home seemed to teeter totter and not look well She picked up after that and started putting on weight and looking very good, so I thought it was that she seemed to be the youngest of the bunch.Could she had had something that is now spreading to the rest?

I have 3 left now. The Australorp seemed very subdued last night and the RIR as I had mentioned seemed to be having a bit of trouble yesterday as she did last Monday but she snapped out of it. The one that died, one of the Barred Rocks, never showed any sign of distress, ate like a horse, was one of the plumpest and was so lively! From one moment to the next last night she started acting unwell, deep breathing and then just died while my husband was holding her!

Both of you mentioned a respiratory problem, so - should I just go ahead and treat them for it although I see no runny noses? How about worms, how does one know if that is a problem? With worms would there be more emaciation or find them in the poo?

I so appreciate your help! It is wonderful having a board where we can help each other and learn from the experienced. I hope that I may in turn be able to do the same at a later date.

Also, I am a homeopath; I am going to start looking into seeing if I can use homeopathy to help them in some way. I mainly treat people but have treated a few dogs that have been greatly helped, never any birds.....Right now, I think antibiotics or whatever seems to help the most is what I will resort to. Thank you again and hope to hear if you have any further ideas, or learinig about worms.

 

[ginnychick]

Michael,
I forgot to answer where I put the girls while I cleaned and sprayed the Manna Poultry Spray last week. I put them all into a large, clean box with fresh pine shavings while I cleaned. Thanks.

 

[Michael Apple]

worms are very doubtful if they haven't been exposed to outside soil/other birds. Chicks subjected to lots of stress during transportation can bear a weakened immune system. I lost a chick the first week of age due to a common problem of fluid which builds up in the air sac/lungs. Sometimes the chick can be inverted to draw out fluid. Most of the time it cannot. I know people who only give chicks sugar water for 15 minutes the day they are brought home, wait a half hour before giving it back to them. At 4 weeks I don't see this as being the current problem. Homeopathy has it's uses, but when treatment for disease is required, tried and true medicines and antibiotics do the job when the proper ones are used. Feeding the improper balance nutrients can create intestinal problems as well which can cause gasping symptoms. Stools should be formed not runny. Feed should be a balanced starter/grower ration only the first 2 weeks of age. After that small amounts of chicks grit, finely chopped small amounts of grass cuttings, greens for example, can be given occasionally. I use a vitamin-electrolyte-probiotic in the water from the second day, at 2-3 day intervals. Since I use a certain non-medicated organic start and grow feed ration, at about three weeks, I use Corid 9.6% in the water 5 days a week until they get outside at around 8 weeks of age. I will use it again after that if I see symptoms of coccidiosis.

 

[Michael Apple]

CRD has varied symptoms, or no symptoms will be noticeable at all. Symptoms which are noticeable show things like nasal discharge, rattling in the throat, squeaky crows, swollen eye, coughing.

 

[ginnychick]

Michael,
You give the Corid instead of medicated feed - I have been giving medicated feed since they came home, so if I am giving medicated feed then the Corid not necessary? The people that sold them to me say they feed this feed til they are 20 weeks old then change over to organic layer food. Is this okay? I don't think they have coccidocis because they have not been going limp, blood in the poo and they have been gaining weight so well....

The poo has been pretty well formed most of the time. I did see it runny on a couple of occassions after I fed the some greens. No blood.

You and the other post recommended some different antibiotics, since both of you thought it might be some sort of respiratory illness. Where do you get your antibiotics from? I know I saw some powedered I think tetracycline, when I went to the feed store. They have a nice variety of products for poultry. You recommended Tylan or LS-50, where do I get? Would the tetracycline work instead if all I can get?

Thank you so much. Ginny

 

[casportpony]

Our chicks were the picture of health, now one died last weekend and one this weekend! Background:

Last week our chicks wereabout 3 1/2 weeks old. The smallest chick, the Brahma, suddenly was down and having labored breathing.This happened in a matter of an hour! The chick had been the tenderest of the brood when we brought the 5 home, and we figured it was that she was not strong enough, but she had been acting and eating just fine!

Monday our LIR seemed lethargic and I was afraid she was going also. She somehow got better. Since then all 4 chicks seemed to be the picture of health - gaining weight, drinking and running to my hand if I offered them a bit of herbs.

Tonight our Barred Rock, again labored breathing and died within 15 minutes! She had been perfectly fine just an hour before. She was one of the biggest in the brood. Again the LIR who was out of it on Monday, also looked lethargic, but she somehow seems to be better agaiin.

What have we done, thoughts we have had:

We dusted all of them last week with wood ashes in case it was mites. I could not see active mite infestation, but just in case I bought Manna Natural Poultry Spray and sprayed the brooder after cleqning it, to help ward off any mites then put in the pine bark shavings.

I have put a tad bit of vitamins in their water since we lost the first chick last week, just in case they have some sort of deficiency from the medicated feed I have been giving them since we have had them 3 weeks.

They are in a brooder with a bulb. The temp has been around 78 degrees.

I have given them bits of dill, parsley, sprouted lentils and sprouted chia seed which they all love.

Done differently: last week our grandkids were over. Soon after they left the Brahma died. I did not know what to think. They ad not been handling them. I did close the door to the room they were in to keep our 2 year old grandson away from them.

Tonight I did the same thing. They all seemed fine, then within 15 mins. like I said they were basically dying! I feared the brooder might have gotten too hot or something, but they are able to scoot to the other corner of the brooder to be cool if they need to. Sp the heat could be an explanation, but seems far fetched.

Could they have worms? How do I tell?

Could they have coccidocis even though they are being fed the medicated food?

They seem to have okay poop,no runny noses and as I said running around seemingly healthy and happy. What is unexplainablle to us is that they seem to go downhilll in a matter of less than an hour! I would think that mites, worms, etc would start having them act droopy or sick for a time and not having them die so suddenly.

I've checked, we do not have a poultry veterinarian anywhere near us. I don't know if I could take one in to Rutgers to have it examined.

Please, any thoughts or suggestions you might have would be greatly appreciated!

Very sad chicken owner in Central NJ.

You should probably do some research on parsley toxicity in birds. Most of what I have read says that you should not feed it to them. When in doubt, consult an avian veterinarian.

 

[ginnychick]

Will check on it right away. Thank you for mentioning this. Weird how it is just affecting some....