I had a previous thread going trying to figure out why my chicks kept dying and I finally think I figured it out.
(Previous thread for your reference: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/783728/unusually-high-mortality-rates-in-chicks-for-2013 )
Someone mentioned they had a chick with similar symptoms to mine and it ended up being a vitamin E deficiency. I have been adding a vitamin and electrolyte supplement to the chick water since day one that does include vitamin E so at first I thought maybe it wasn't connected.
Then one of the chicks from my own flock developed an underbite beak and another stopped walking (acting perfectly normal otherwise). Up to that point, I had only experienced mortality and symptoms in chicks I had bought from feed stores.
I did a quick search on vitamin deficiencies and underbites and found in a REPTILE article that rickets from lack of ultraviolet light will cause calcium to not be absorbed and create underbites and broken bones, etc.
My vitamin supplement does have vitamin D in it.
However, it is over a year old and wasn't stored properly. I didn't think and just rolled up the bag, stuck it in my spice cabinet and there it lived for a year in a humid environment. I'd imagine that would break down the vitamins pretty quickly.
Not to mention I've not been able to take my chicks outside with me lately due to long hours at work and rain on days I have off so the poor chickies weren't even able to get vitamin D from the sun!
So I quickly bought some new vitamin supplements for the water (who knows what else they are deficient in!) and gave them plain grassfed whole yogurt with extra vitamin D3 in it. I also added coral calcium, kelp powder, vitamin K2 and a teeny tiny bit of an adult multivitamin.
Mixed that with a little shredded coconut and honey and they LOVED it.
My main question though is, will they be able to make a full recovery? If the underbites were caused by rickets, could they revert back to normal when they are no longer deficient?
I know that the ones that don't want to walk will recover (as I already had one recover from giving it human multivitamin mixed with sourdough bread crumbs last month (without realizing that is exactly what everyone needed in the first place!))
(Previous thread for your reference: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/783728/unusually-high-mortality-rates-in-chicks-for-2013 )
Someone mentioned they had a chick with similar symptoms to mine and it ended up being a vitamin E deficiency. I have been adding a vitamin and electrolyte supplement to the chick water since day one that does include vitamin E so at first I thought maybe it wasn't connected.
Then one of the chicks from my own flock developed an underbite beak and another stopped walking (acting perfectly normal otherwise). Up to that point, I had only experienced mortality and symptoms in chicks I had bought from feed stores.
I did a quick search on vitamin deficiencies and underbites and found in a REPTILE article that rickets from lack of ultraviolet light will cause calcium to not be absorbed and create underbites and broken bones, etc.
My vitamin supplement does have vitamin D in it.
However, it is over a year old and wasn't stored properly. I didn't think and just rolled up the bag, stuck it in my spice cabinet and there it lived for a year in a humid environment. I'd imagine that would break down the vitamins pretty quickly.
Not to mention I've not been able to take my chicks outside with me lately due to long hours at work and rain on days I have off so the poor chickies weren't even able to get vitamin D from the sun!
So I quickly bought some new vitamin supplements for the water (who knows what else they are deficient in!) and gave them plain grassfed whole yogurt with extra vitamin D3 in it. I also added coral calcium, kelp powder, vitamin K2 and a teeny tiny bit of an adult multivitamin.
Mixed that with a little shredded coconut and honey and they LOVED it.
My main question though is, will they be able to make a full recovery? If the underbites were caused by rickets, could they revert back to normal when they are no longer deficient?
I know that the ones that don't want to walk will recover (as I already had one recover from giving it human multivitamin mixed with sourdough bread crumbs last month (without realizing that is exactly what everyone needed in the first place!))
