First

Slamoureux

In the Brooder
May 12, 2021
9
16
31

Hi all,

Just got my first batch of 21 chicks at the beginning of April, and am absolutely loving them! I have the brooder set up in my entryway, they had a heat lamp with good temperature until this week when I weaned them off, and all was well.

So far, I have lost 5 babies, all very rapidly. In the morning when I leave for work they are happy, active, eating and drinking, by the time I get home from work they are acting a little lethargic, and by bedtime they’ve died. Two in the first week, one each in week 2,3, and now 4. No loose or bloody poops that I’ve seen, after the first 2 died I treated everyone for coccidiosis for a week anyway. They got only medicated chick feed until last week when we started giving them little bits of vegetables (and grit). The last 2 that died had the head shaking motion in the video above, though this one had much poorer balance than the other.

I am just at a loss! I live in (very) rural Canada, the nearest vet is over an hour away and they don’t specialize in chickens. Any thoughts or advice would be super appreciated, I’m just devastated my little guys are dying! And so fast I don’t even have a chance to intervene. :hit
 
I'm so sorry. I don't know, but hope someone can help. Is there any kind of avian vet around you? Any way to get a necropsy done as it's multiple chicks who have passed? :hugs
 
I’m so sorry this I happening to you!

This is a nueological issue, the problem is it could be a number of things.

Poisoning
Molds
Bacteria
Virus
Vitamin E, Thiamine, or other vitamin deficiencies
Parasites
 
I just noticed watching your video again that you have a branch in with them for a perch, what kind of wood is it?

Also what kinds of vegetables have you been giving them?
 
Also is it possible rodents could have come in and been around them?
The branch is from a tree in our backyard, I had the bigger chicks in there with no issues so I don’t think it’s the culprit. (The breeder gave me some day old chicks and some that were about 4 weeks old, which I separated due to limited brooder space)

Definitely no rodents, the cats and dog wouldn’t allow it!

For snacks we have given them tomatoes, spinach, dry oatmeal, and sometimes my husband sneaks them some bread crumbs.

Now that I think about it, none of the bigger chicks got sick. I used a deck box for the smaller brooder that had been sitting outside, maybe there were some mold spores or something in there that I didn’t completely clean?? I thought I was thorough, but maybe I missed something :(
 
The branch is from a tree in our backyard, I had the bigger chicks in there with no issues so I don’t think it’s the culprit. (The breeder gave me some day old chicks and some that were about 4 weeks old, which I separated due to limited brooder space)

Definitely no rodents, the cats and dog wouldn’t allow it!

For snacks we have given them tomatoes, spinach, dry oatmeal, and sometimes my husband sneaks them some bread crumbs.

Now that I think about it, none of the bigger chicks got sick. I used a deck box for the smaller brooder that had been sitting outside, maybe there were some mold spores or something in there that I didn’t completely clean?? I thought I was thorough, but maybe I missed something :(
I wondered about the branch after reading about something called Dactylariosis, http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/dactylariosis though I don’t know how common that is, the spores seem to like fir bark. Aflatoxins and Aspergillosis can cause size seizures, if it isn’t that or some sort of bacteria the older ones are used to I would then suspect a virus that maybe the older chicks were vaccinated for but the younger ones were not.
I know the vet is far away but you might consider calling or looking around online if one or a veterinary university does necropsies and sending one of the ones who died in for necropsy, they might be able to figure out what it is that’s causing this.
 

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