Entire flock Sick - I FEEL HOPELESS!!! Swollen Faces - Yellow patches - Lethargy

I don't know, I haven't had to do it myself. But some combination of soil testing and forage testing should give you clues. If you have a county extension office, or a state dept of agriculture, they may be able to point you in the right direction. You'd be looking for soil testing and foliage testing for agricultural chemical or other chemical exposure, I'd think. I know it can be done - I am regularly around an environmental cleanup site that was heavily polluted. You'd never know it to look at the vegetation and animals and soil, which look perfectly fine, but they and the groundwater are all heavily loaded up on heavy metals and toxic compounds. It's a very bad idea to eat a number of animals/shellfish/fish in this area, or to disturb the fields they are trying to test/reclaim, or to dig anywhere without permission. I don't even eat the wild berries.

Sorry your chickens are ill. Hope you figure it out!!!
Thanks for the great advice. That sounds terrible - I’m sorry you have to live around that. I’ll contact my county extension - I was wanted to test the soil anyway for our garden next year.

From what I can tell - I’m dealing with mites. I think that is the main offender. Once I realized that the one sick chicken probably didn’t have anything to do with what’s going on. And I think it’s the bedding I was using that was causing the limping - so if I remove those symptoms - I think all that’s left is mites. I’m going to start heavily treating for that and see how it goes. Thanks again for your help.
 
The guy who started this site has a book called "chicken health for dummies"
In the section Recognizing Sources of Poisonings in Your Backyard, he points out Botulism, from contaminated food/water,pointing out that chickens are most frequently poisoned by eating dead flock mates or the fly larvae that have been feasting carcasses. It's commonly found in soil, thrives in warm, wet environments w/rotting vegetation, spoiled food, or decomposing carcasses. It's the most potent toxin known; only tiny doses are needed to paralyze the nervous system and kill an affected bird. Sick chickens will usually be sitting on the ground, hunched over, unable to stand or hold their heads up. It causes floppy paralysis of the legs, wings, and neck, Chickens are often found dead, with no signs of a struggle.
I quit stocking up on bags of food after I had a bag of startena go rancid INSIDE.
Household poisons, special mention re stuff used for lice & mites, only use products labeled for use on chickens follow label directions precisely.
Insecticides, rat poison, antifreeze, fertilizer, and mothballs can poison poultry.
shotgun pellets, fishing weights, batteries, paint chips, and contaminated dirt. Lead poisoning in poultry is a human health concern, because significant amounts of lead can be found in the meat and eggs of lead-exposed chickens. Chickens suffering from lead poisoning become thin and weak and may have nervous system signs, such as lack of coordination, limping, or paralysis. A veterinarian or diagnostic laboratory can diagnose lead poisoning by taking a blood test or by measuring lead in organ tissue.remove loose metal objects and sources of peeling paint. The foundations of old buildings aren’t good foraging ground for chickens, because lead paint scrapings accumulated over the years may have contaminated the soil.
mycotoxin is a toxic substance produced naturally by a fungus (mold). Some fungi like to grow on grain and other feed ingredients but may not be visible as obvious mold growth. Scientists have discovered hundreds of mycotoxins, and many of them make chickens sick when they eat contaminated grains or processed feed. You can notice a wide range of signs in poultry poisoned by mycotoxins, including decreased appetite and egg production, poor growth and feathering, and crusty sores on the skin, beak, toes, or inside of the mouth. Mycotoxins can also cause sudden death of poultry. Diagnosing mycotoxin poisoning is a challenge because the signs mimic so many other diseases, and because only specialized laboratories perform testing for mycotoxins in feed. You may suspect mycotoxin poisoning when you notice that an onset of a problem coincides with feeding a new batch or type of feed. Store feed for no more than 2 months,avoid moldy food, periodixally scrub feeders.
Don’t use shatterproof versions of heat-lamp bulbs to keep chickens warm. PTFE coating on the bulb is what makes it shatterproof. Chicks have died from exposure to gas emitted by this bulb.
Wow - that is a wealth of information. Thank you so much. I would have never thought about any of that. I’m going to go do a thorough examination of their foraging grounds. It sound like I need to get that book. Thanks again!!
 
I did change how I was feeding them. I actually was only feeding store bought pellets for the past few months. I had new chicks I introduced to the flock, so I went to feeding everyone organic feed from the store in order to make sure the growing chicks were getting the right nutrition. I put calcium out as always since it was a mixed flock of some laying hens, some new chicks and some roosters. The problem is that I switched brands and didn’t know the new brand had two different starter/ grower feeds. My old brand had just one feed that you started them on and you kept them on that. This new feed ended up being 22% protein and my older hens were eating it exclusively. I think it probably did damage. My husband didn’t want to send in the chicken - so he cut her open himself. She wasn’t egg bound, nor did she have a tumor or anything. She was extremely fat - like the size of your hand fat deposits. I don’t know if that was from the high protein feed and I don’t know if that is what was causing the problem. I wish we could have mailed her in - but hubby gets to make those calls.
Did you happen - or he - to identify the liver? Not sure this fits but when you mentioned fat, its what I thought of. http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/fatty-liver-syndrome
 
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Wow - that is a wealth of information. Thank you so much. I would have never thought about any of that. I’m going to go do a thorough examination of their foraging grounds. It sound like I need to get that book. Thanks again!!
I'm a fan of all "For Dummies," bc that's usually where I'm starting from.🤣 It is pretty informative.
 
Did you happen - or he - to identify the liver? Not sure this fits but when you mentioned fat, its what I thought of. http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/fatty-liver-syndrome
Hi, Thank you for that. I have just been doing research into that. It was definitely FLS. Her liver was discolored and spotted and I believe she had most of the symptoms. I will be doing a deep dive into what is going on and what I could be doing wrong. Thank you for your help.
 
I'm a fan of all "For Dummies," bc that's usually where I'm starting from.🤣 It is pretty informative.
Well, I am right there with you!! I feel like quite the dummy after loosing a chicken to FLS. I thought I was doing so well and totally had this chicken figured out. Apparently I still have a lot to learn!
 
First do not take people's opinions on this site as gospel. Get to a vet / lab asap and then you can figure out what you're trying to cure. If it's mites no matter what type = Vasoline. They say Vasoline or Gasoline (on the legs only). Nothing else works to be honest. Also dust your chickens. On the comb and wattles you can try Vasoline. It suffocates the mites/fungus. Have you ruled out Fowlpox? If it's fungal I would suggest Miconazole on the head area. Also remove them from that location. They won't get better if their environment does not change. My 2 cents, the usual disclaimers apply.
 

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