contracting vent

[Fbkchicks15]

I was given 6 chicks two days ago, about 5 weeks old. One of them has had pasty butt which I have been able to clean off several times
and have put vaseline around her vent. She has several what look like normal poops. She doesnt seem to have much strength. She lays around
most of the time but occasionally will eat a bit and drink a little. We have given her some water with a syringe. She looks like she is panting from her vent.
Has anyone experienced this? I really think she is close to dying.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I was given 6 chicks two days ago, about 5 weeks old. One of them has had pasty butt which I have been able to clean off several times
and have put vaseline around her vent. She has several what look like normal poops. She doesnt seem to have much strength. She lays around
most of the time but occasionally will eat a bit and drink a little. We have given her some water with a syringe. She looks like she is panting from her vent.
Has anyone experienced this? I really think she is close to dying.

How is your chick?

Try to keep her hydrated and offer wet chick starter.

Since she's 5weeks and is laying around with not much strength, IF she were mine, I would treat her for Cocci. Treatment is with Corid which can be found at your local feed store and online. Dosage is 1 1/2 teaspoons Corid powder per gallon or 2 teaspoons of 9.6% Corid liquid per gallon.
Give for 5-7 days - make sure this is the ONLY water available during that time period. Mix a fresh batch at least once a day.
After they finish treatment offer some poultry vitamins and probiotics/plain yogurt.

Symptoms of Cocci include lethargy, diarrhea with mucous or blood, loss of balance, not eating and having a puffed up/huddle appearance.

While she may not be suffering from a Cocci overload, Corid is generally considered a safe and mild medication, so it won't hurt her.

 

[Fbkchicks15]

We treated her with corid, dropper fed her water. She never quit eating and never had visual blood in her poop. My daughter who is a nurse took great care of her but poor thing didn't make it. Thanks for advice.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Some chicks when they hit a certain age can just fail to thrive, it's possible that she may have had a genetic/developmental disorder that appeared as she got older.

fwiw - there are 9 strains of Cocci that chickens can have and only 1, possibly 2 (if it's really bad) show up with visible blood in the stool, so without testing, a lot of times it's hard to know if the cause of illness is Cocci or not.