Dying chicks-NEED ADVICE QUICK, please.

[featheredmom]

Our babies were multiple breeds(25 "rainbow layers," 12 "brown layers," and 13 "rare layers). I dont know if it was simply shipping stress or if it was some type of sickness that spread around to all the chicks...just sad regardless of the cause.

 

[weaversfarm]

I have gotten bad batches of chicks but no deaths in the numbers you had. I am so sorry for your kids, it is devastating for young kids to have to learn to deal with death of babies. I don't know what you were using for a brooder, but I would disinfect it with bleach water before introducing new chicks in it. I don't think it was an illness, I think it was Postal workers not caring and treating the chicks too rough. Mine got stuck on a USPS truck overnight and arrived after 4 days of shipping and I did have deaths as a result of that, but Meyer issued me a credit immediately. Vetrx is wonderful stuff!! I have used it several times and it works very fast, everyone should have some of that in their medicine cabinet for dogs, cats, cattle, goats, chickens, humans, pretty much anything that breathes!! I do hope you have better luck with the next shipment, it's heartbreaking to watch little ones die.

 

[trsturself]

I know this is an old thread but I thought I'd share that we lost 56% of the chicks we ordered from Meyer this year. Some DOA, others dead by the end of the first day, others days later. Anything that lasted longer than the first day had the same symptoms, running around healthy, eating/drinking/active then just hours later dead.
I'm done with chicks this year and I don't think I'll ever order chicks through the mail again. I'm going with local breeders and hopefully a little bit older chicks that are beyond the fragile stage.