Help please!

Maria143

Hatching
Aug 6, 2016
3
0
7
I have 5 chicks that are 2 weeks old now. I acquired 4 of them when they were 2 days old and then got the fifth at 6 days old. He is a runt and has mangled feet and so I have kept him seperate. All chicks are rescues from a back yard breeder that was not taking proper care of them and so I dont know their breed. The first set of chicks started open mouth breathing and sneezing last Saturday and so I called my vet who said to start them on Tetracycline. They only had Oxytetracycline at the COOP which I started this past Monday evening. I have never had chickens before and I have to be honest and say I feel I have royally messed this up. After a couple of days on the meds I was looking for information to see if I could mix their electrolytes with the antibiotic and discovered I was supposed to have been making a new batch every 24 hours and I had been doing it about every other day. My little runt doesnt seem to be getting better and sounds rattling so I was looking for other ways to help him when I found a post that said Oxytetracycline should be 1 - 2.5 tbl a gallon and I had been doing 1.5 tsp. I had gotten the smaller dose from a forum but I mustve read it wrong. Im wondering if I can start them on the higher dose or if now theyve built an immunity and it wont work. My bigger group is doing TONS better but still a little sneezy from time to time. I am very worried about my little runt and am hating how much I have messed this up. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
 
I have 5 chicks that are 2 weeks old now. I acquired 4 of them when they were 2 days old and then got the fifth at 6 days old. He is a runt and has mangled feet and so I have kept him seperate. All chicks are rescues from a back yard breeder that was not taking proper care of them and so I dont know their breed. The first set of chicks started open mouth breathing and sneezing last Saturday and so I called my vet who said to start them on Tetracycline. They only had Oxytetracycline at the COOP which I started this past Monday evening. I have never had chickens before and I have to be honest and say I feel I have royally messed this up. After a couple of days on the meds I was looking for information to see if I could mix their electrolytes with the antibiotic and discovered I was supposed to have been making a new batch every 24 hours and I had been doing it about every other day. My little runt doesnt seem to be getting better and sounds rattling so I was looking for other ways to help him when I found a post that said Oxytetracycline should be 1 - 2.5 tbl a gallon and I had been doing 1.5 tsp. I had gotten the smaller dose from a forum but I mustve read it wrong. Im wondering if I can start them on the higher dose or if now theyve built an immunity and it wont work. My bigger group is doing TONS better but still a little sneezy from time to time. I am very worried about my little runt and am hating how much I have messed this up. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Does the vet have any idea what respiratory illness they may have?
Offer wet feed and plenty of fresh water, make sure you have ventilation in your brooder. (you can post photos of your new babies and your brooder setup if you like).

If they were mine I would increase the dosage and see how that goes.

Here is more info on dosing and some links on foot/leg problems:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...acycline-antibiotic-in-water/70#post_17143928
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/leg-foot-and-toe-issues-in-poultry-of-all-ages
https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry
 

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