CHICKS SUDDENLY DYING! Any thoughts or suggestions?

[kynewbchickie]

Hi Knewbchikie,

Thanks for your reply. I have found mixed opinions on parsley - many people on the foum give it, but have seen a couple of places that say to skip! So very confused.... did you read it was toxic?

The two link you posted are great to have. I had read them before and find that the one about the food they eat is very helpful (I chuckle cause they say the mealworms are a foolproof favorite treat -- not to mine!; maybe as they get older they;ll eat the bag I just bought). The other link is monumental -seems almost every plant has possibility of being toxic! The fellow who wrote it sure did a nice job compiling all the info., shame he is not raising chickens anymore.

Great that you too are a homeopath. Are you an herbalist also? I dabble and love reading and learning about herbs, vitamins, etc. but I trained as a classical homeopath in NY and thus only use homeopathic remedies and tinctures for treating homeopathically. I am currently in the process of ordering a couple of homeopathic books that deal strictly with poultry to get versed in it, so hopefully I can help my chicks with anything that comes up in the future using homeopathy or at least as an adjunct to allopathic medicines if it seems to be the indicated thiing to do. Might as well try to keep them healthy with what I know what to do

I thought that I might try to contribute to the forum later on by writing some about how to treat certain conditions using homeopathy for those who want to try somehthing natural and non toxic.

Still waiting for the the results of the testing done on the last dead chick. Will post once I hear anything new.

I agree - it seems there are a large amount of plants that are good/bad, depending on the source.

My homeopathy and herbalism skills come from being the great-granddaughter of a Cherokee medicine man. He died when I was around 8 years old, but he left me books about the native ways of medicine and living, and journals with his own recipes for treatments for various ailments...but they only cover people, horses, and dogs. I was even gifted with a journal on how to build a traditional Cherokee dwelling, and where to find the materials in my home state to do so. Most of my medicine training is in allopathic (from working as a vet tech for a good while) and healing arts (massage) so the only experience I have for chickens comes from my time in the vet office. Fortunately the vet I worked for (and still do call if necessary) had avian training so I did see some farm calls for chicken issues in the past. I, too, would love to do more digging in the native remedies for chickens - unfortunately, there's just not much out there and I'm hard-pressed to find anyone who was trained under a medicine man to ask. That's my background, and I look forward to seeing what you can bring to the table with homeopathy!

I hope you get your results soon...are the rest of the babies still doing well?

 

[ginnychick]

Yes, thank you, they seem okay at the moment. Had one, the RIR, acting funny ( acting like taking a dust bath, paddling around with her feet and not being able to get up) this morning (third time she has acted that way but seems to get back on her feet after a while!). She chirps non-stop - very vocal. Can't wait to get back final report. This is nervewracking!

So interesting about your Grandfather! Treasure his information and hope you get to use some of it. My Grandfather was a diviner or dowser (used to find water) and was supposed to be pretty good. I wish that knowledge had been passed down to us

Will post something as soon as I hear results.

 

[kynewbchickie]

She chirps non-stop - very vocal.

Is it a chirp, or a louder chirp that seems distressed?

About the dowsing - my uncle still does that. I asked him to teach me how, and he handed me the rods and said to use those first and just walk around. They'll cross when you get very close to an underground spring. Then, he handed me a forked piece of wood that he picked up out of his wood pile and told me to "feel" the shift in my arms as I walked near the same spot the dowsing rods crossed...I definitely felt a pull downward on the wood. Can't say how it works even with all my science background, but it works and it's SUPER easy to learn how to do!

 

[heby]

Did you ever find out what the report said? Why your chicks died?

I have had 2 over the past few days that were fine when I went to bed and when I woke in the morning, they were sluggish and then just died. It is very sad and puzzling.

 

[casportpony]

Did you ever find out what the report said? Why your chicks died?

I have had 2 over the past few days that were fine when I went to bed and when I woke in the morning, they were sluggish and then just died. It is very sad and puzzling.

X2!

 

[ginnychick]

Hi Heby,

So sorry to hear about your two chicks. No, am still waiting for futher info. Your post prompted me to contact the pathologist to see if they had found anything. It has been long enought that they should know something! I have no clue as to what it could be. Since mine did not seem to have any internal or external parasites then it should not be cocci, which is what I originally was thinking it might be.

Did yours have any discharge from their beaks, how did their eyes look, any coughing? If some of this then respiratory; mine did not. I have wondered if mine could have had a thiamine deficiency from the medicated feed. I read that the medicated feed, the Amprolium in it, inhibits the absorption of thiamine and thus can create a defiency; some chicks would be hardier than others and some more susceptible.....

My remaining three seem to be doing well. (But of course my last one was doing great and then - all of a sudden - so I am very hesitant to be saying this....) I have been feeding mine little bits of greens - kale, dill, cilantro and some chopped up hard boiled eggs sometimes and apple cider vinegar in their water, which I hope will aid in adding some of the additional vitamins and minerals.

Maybe call your state agricultural agency and see if they have any available funds to do a necropsy on any of your chicks that die, to help you get an idea of what is happening. That is what I was able to do. But, as you can see, it is SLOW.

 

[heby]

I called the vet and they referred me back to the feed store since the owner knows a lot about chickens. After we went thru the accommodations of brooder, feed, and all other possible problems, we came to the conclusion that maybe it was the lamp and they were getting too hot. He said that even tho they have water available and have area to move out of the lamp that sometimes they stay under there and get too hot and basically have heat strokes cause they get dehydrated. I don't kno if this was the case, but I did have one the was a little more sluggish than the rest yesterday, so we shut off the lamp all day and only put it on at night and it is fine. So maybe it is possible that they just got too hot and didn't move to the cooler area. I came out of town and my hubby is taking care of them for a few days. We ended up losing my sons tiny little bantam which he will be distraught over.

 

[Harleyx2]

What watt bulb do you have?

 

[kynewbchickie]

Raise the lamp a bit more if they're getting too warm - you can have your hubby do this since you're out of town.

 

[lititzchic]

I have a similar problem. all seemed fine and one by one they almost walk as if they are lame or cannot walk, then weak and lethargic, then die. almost seem like they are paralized on one side HELP!