Emergency!! Lost 16 chickens in a week!!

[sgt_dane]

The vet is testing for everything possible including mereks and newcastles disease, any deficiencies or anything that is off in their system. One more passed this morning. I have given them vitamin B in their water, calcium and bird multivitamins with no change yet. I'm worried for my little Japanese bantam roo, he cannot walk, is still eating and drinking but also still losing weight. I found some mites (???) on the polish, they're about the size of a grain of rice with 1/3 of the body being brown and 2/3 being a translucent white.. I have tried googling it with no luck. I don't know if I could possibly get photos of one, I found two but havnt searched him any more than that. He is now paralyzed in his wings and legs, can still twitch his muscles and move his head but his head is more being held back farther than it is supposed to be. All their faces are white almost as though they're lethargic. Again any ideas on the mites I've described? I'm about to call the vet to see what he has to say about it.

 

[Judy]

On lice and mites:

http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=425486

Sorry for your troubles, and best of luck to you.

 

[ChickLover98]

Whatever you do, keep them eating and dont give them acess to any more of that food. Check the ingredients and get them tested. Make sure to watch out for harmful chemicals. Maybe try some scrambled eggs and all-organic feed.

 

[sgt_dane]

It's not any type of lice or mite that I can find. There's nothing on the feathers, there's just a lethargic chicken covered in rice sized insects.. I cannot find anything on them. Still no word from the vet. Probably won't hear from him until Monday.. Ugh..
The birds in my coop are doing better, they're eating and drinking, well, getting a little appetite back but not near what it should be for garbage disposals on feet. I'll keep you posted though.

 

[RareBreedFancier]

I feel so sorry for you. Hopefully the Vet can find out what's wrong and your birds will be ok.

 

[FarmerDenise]

That's a big insect!!!

I had access to a vet who specialized in chickens. He told me any flea medication that is deemed safe for kittens is ok to use on chickens. I would give those chickens bath in nice warm water with a safe insecticidal soap. I use De Flea Pet Shampoo (I specifically showed this to my vet and he said it was ok) www.naturalchemistry.com
I would get a picture of the insect. After the bath you will find bodies of the insect, I would save as many as possible in a sample bag.

After giving the bird a bath, get it warm and dry. I use a hair dryer on a low setting. I use a heating pad, a cozy box and lots of towels to keep the bird warm.

I would provide the birds with a warm porridge and dunk their beaks into it to get them to eat. I would make sure they drink, even if I have to feed them with a syringe. I would fortify their water with electrolites and vitamins. This is always one of my 1st first aid measures.

I try things like: warm milk and bread or oatmeal, yogurt, cottage cheese, cooked rice, cooked potatoes, cut up fresh fruit and vegetables, canned corn. The point being to get them to eat to keep them alive. Keep them warm and cozy. And I always give them love. Even if it is one I plan on butchering eventually. You will find me sitting on the couch with a damp chicken on my lap (and a towel between me and the chicken

)watching tv and offering the chicken tid bits or just cuddling her to keep her warm.

I sure hope that you will be able to save most of your birds!

 

[sgt_dane]

Problem is that I have a outdoor coop with 3 barred rocks, 3 americaunas, 2 silkies, 4 old English, 1 golden neck (poor thing lost her roo and sister), 1 mottled duccle, and a couple little mix bantams (duccle/old English). That's quite a few birds to give a bath, I'll have to make a day of it. Lol. I just don't want them to get a chill, I'll just get some diotomatious earth and sprinkle them with it. Should work pretty good

. The ones in the coop are still doing better.. I changed their food but noticed they still don't want to eat it. Im hoping they hang in there, can't handle losing another one.

 

[sgt_dane]

So I now I have a standard barred rock hen that's stumbling around like she's drunk.. Shell fall over and just lay there until I pick her up, she's walking good other than her falling down. I'm making them a smorgasbord of scrambled eggs, left over spaghetti, fresh made rice and minced carrots.. Have some emergen-c that's going into their water..I cooked vitamin d, b complex and calcium in their rice and eggs, hoping it does the trick. I'm also putting a different water dish in there with antibiotics. Will keep everyone posted and thank you for all your feedback!!

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

This is just a thought as I came across your thread, but it sounds like Botulism to me, (I am by NO means an expert, just a random thought)... It may very well NOT be this but I looked it up and here is some info on it...
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/19/botulism

First symptoms; Nervous signs, weakness, progressive flaccid paralysis of legs, wings then neck, then sudden death.


Treatment

Remove source of toxin, supportive treatment if justifiable, antibiotics, selenium.

Have you any antibiotics on hand? It may help save some until you can hear back from the vet...?

And I found this on another site;

Botulism is caused usually by a chicken eating something rotten or moldy- moldy feed behind a bin or a dead mouse etc. Affected birds start out weak (weak in legs) and progress to paralyzed within 24 hours. Usually the bird has a weak neck and will often drool if they can no longer swallow. Appetite is reduced, at least after a few hours of "infection" and the bird doesn't want to eat at all after about 12 hours. Sometimes they will be thirsty, but that depends on the individual bird. Birds with botulism can be treated- keep them in a cool place (opposite to how you would usually treat a sick bird) as the toxins metabolize a little slower this way and the body may be able to deal with them. Birds that have botulism typically die within 24 hours- if you can get an infected bird past 36 hours, your chances increase significantly of having them survive. Here's how to treat them:

Flushing toxins using activated charcoal:
Go to your pet supply store and pick up activated charcoal (for fish tanks). Crush up into a very fine powder, about 3 tablespoons. Mix this with half a cup or so of water- enough that the charcoal is mostly suspended but not so much that you've diluted it too much. Now, while you're at the pet supply store, pick up some airline hosing too (again, for fish tanks). You'll also need a catheter tip syringe, 35 cc. Measure the distance from the duck or chicken's bill to the crop (in a duck's case, the length of the neck or about 10-12 inches). Cut the hose to this length and make sure the end isn't sharp. Fit the other end onto the syringe (you may have to heat the end of the tube to fit it onto the catheter tip syringe). Suck up a full syringe full of the charcoal mixture, making sure that you suck all the liquid out of the tube before you stick it down their throat. Open the bird's mouth- at the back of the tongue, there's an opening, called the glottis. This is the opening to their windpipe and NOTHING should ever go down this opening. As long as you avoid this hole, you'll be fine. Wet the tube, then slide the tube down the throat (someone is holding the bird now). If you hit resistance, stop- if you are far enough down the throat, administer the fluids slowly. If not and you still have a lot of the tube sticking out, then pull back and gently slide it down again. Sometimes it's just the position of the neck that causes problems. Administer the 35 cc or however much the bird can take. Do it slowly enough that you can monitor if any fluids are coming back up the throat. If this happens, pull the tube out (pinching the tube so no further fluid comes out) and drain the birds throat and mouth, then lift the head up to allow the bird to breathe. This doesn't happen very often, especially if you are careful. To increase effectiveness of the charcoal, repeat this procedure every 6 hours for 24 hours.​

 

[kid-n-chickens]

for the bugs you might try Seven Dust for gardens. Good Luck hope you get it figured out soon!