I just watched 5 of my day old chicks suddenly act strange and then die in ten minutes!!!Please Help

[ten chicks]

Is bulb clear? Best to use a red heat bulb,white can cause stress to birds. Is your bulb a Westinghouse 250 watt 120 volt clear bulb # 250R40-HT-EZ,these lights have a clear teflon coating on base. Do a search on the type of bulb you are using.

 

[VioletBlueIvy]

Yes it is. The red one burned out so I brought this one in from the coop. I use it in the covered run for a little extra light and heat on these dark winter days.
It says 125w 120v the westinghouse logo and china on the bulb. The metal base has Y5111 stamped on it. It says nowhere that its coated. I googled it and it said nothing about a coating either. But if I google teflon coated heat light the picture of those doesn't look any different from this one. It would be marked with PTFE right? I have been using it in my coop, just like I have been feeding them from the same bag of feed. My adult birds are fine.

 

[ten chicks]

Yes it is. The red one burned out so I brought this one in from the coop. I use it in the covered run for a little extra light and heat on these dark winter days.
It says 125w 120v the westinghouse logo and china on the bulb. The metal base has Y5111 stamped on it. It says nowhere that its coated. I googled it and it said nothing about a coating either. But if I google teflon coated heat light the picture of those doesn't look any different from this one. It would be marked with PTFE right? I have been using it in my coop, just like I have been feeding them from the same bag of feed. My adult birds are fine.

I don't believe it is marked on the bulb. Your other birds are fine probably b/c there is more fresh air,whereas in an aquarium there is nowhere for the gas to escape. Have you since moved them to a more open brooder,this could explain why the rest are ok. I am not saying 100% that this is the problem,but any light with any teflon coating is poisonous to birds.

The real danger in children handling chicks is dropping/squeezing them,not contaminating them from their hands. Most children love baby chicks.

Curious about something,you mention that all your birds eat the same feed,are the adult birds eating chick starter?

 

[1muttsfan]

Many, if not most, OTC light bulbs are Teflon coated. It is not listed on the bulb. There are special lamps made for use with animals, reptile lights work quite well for birds too.

I was also wondering about the food.

 

[VioletBlueIvy]

Yes it is. The red one burned out so I brought this one in from the coop. I use it in the covered run for a little extra light and heat on these dark winter days.

It says 125w 120v the westinghouse logo and china on the bulb. The metal base has Y5111 stamped on it. It says nowhere that its coated. I googled it and it said nothing about a coating either. But if I google teflon coated heat light the picture of those doesn't look any different from this one. It would be marked with PTFE right? I have been using it in my coop, just like I have been feeding them from the same bag of feed. My adult birds are fine.

I don't believe it is marked on the bulb. Your other birds are fine probably b/c there is more fresh air,whereas in an aquarium there is nowhere for the gas to escape. Have you since moved them to a more open brooder,this could explain why the rest are ok.  I am not saying 100% that this is the problem,but any light with any teflon coating is poisonous to birds.

The real danger in children handling chicks is dropping/squeezing them,not contaminating them from their hands. Most children love baby chicks.

Curious about something,you mention that all your birds eat the same feed,are the adult birds eating chick starter?

Yes, in the winter I feed a mix of layer, flock raiser or chick starter and cracked corn or sunflower seeds. It is so cold here they need the extra protien to be able to keep warm and maintain thier weight and lay eggs.

What happened with these chicks had nothing to do with the kids. They are 10 and 11 and very responsible with the babies. We always wash up before handling new chicks so as not to expose them to something the rest of the flock may carry.

If the bulb is coated it must not have said so on the box, because I know about that, I wouldn't have bought a coated bulb. Unless I was completely not paying attention. The new brooder setup is a rubbermaid tote the same size as the aquarium, maybe a couple inches wider. Set up the same way. There may be a little better air flow but not much.

So,I am leaning towards the feed being the problem. I have to go dump the bag and see if the bottom seems like it got wet. I have bought bags before that were, but I could tell as soon as I opened it it was moldy even though it didnt look it. BUT I bought a bag of sunflower seeds last month and about 1/3 of the bag had sprouted. It was not at all moldy, just sprouted. IF a bag of chick starter was sitting in the same conditions as what caused the sunflower seeds to sprout it would easily mold. Also I looked my dead chicks over, It was all the silkies but one, and the one surviving silkie was the latest to hatch. The other two were silkie crosses and were the first two chicks that hatched. Of the rest of the chicks the ones still acting a tad off are the earlier hatches. The silkies are smaller and it would take less to kill them right? And the older ones would have eaten more of the feed.

Regardless my husband is picking up fresh feed, of a different brand from a different feed store, and some new heat bulbs. I used to use the ceramic type maybe I will just go back to those if I cant trust the bulbs to be marked that they are coated with a toxic substance. I thought teflon was no longer used at all after they realized it was causing people to get sick from thier cookware? Scary!

Whether it is the bulb or the feed will they completely recover or are there going to be lasting effects frok this?

 

[VioletBlueIvy]

I did not know you could get special bulbs for livestock. The feed stores here only sell the regular ones and I hate them, I have had so many defective ones. Good to know thank you!

 

[Dee Dee 2]

I am so sorry for your loss and having your daughter having to see the chicks die. The VERY first things I would do (along with the other suggestions) 1. Change the heat lamp ! (later when you have time google Teflon coating on bulbs killing chickens) 2. Re clean EVERYTHING you washed with bleach. 3. Change the feed. But I doubt that is it. The heat may be causing bleach residue to emit gasses. Chickens respiratory is so fragile. Babies and grown. I NEVER use a clear heat lamp bulb with my birds only red. NEVER EVER use a bulb that is listed as "tuff" or any similar words. They are Teflon coated. HEATED TEFLON WILL KILL BIRDS ! Even a Teflon skillet that is real hot will kill small birds in the same room. I wonder what it does to us ? Best wishes with your problem.

 

[Dee Dee 2]

If you want a TRULY safe heat lamp bulb for your birds Google PREIMIER FENCING CHICKEN SUPPLYS.

 

[VioletBlueIvy]

I am not ruling out toxic fumes yet, but if that was it, they were in there for two days and we covered the whole thing with a towel at first to protect against drafts. If it was gases from the bulb or vaporized chemicals wouldn't that have been when the problem occured, not with it wide open? I washed out the aquarium with just dawn and water, and rinsed and dried it well, I did not use bleach. And before I was worried about the bulb they were already in the new brooder with the same bulb but I haven't lost any more chicks.

What did change is the Aquarium, paper towels and the feed.

I checked the feed, It does not look moldy. It doesn't smell really fresh though, but I may be over- smelling. There are black flecks on the bag itself, could the smaller particles trapped in the creases and weaving of the bag mold? Can the fungus be present but not overtly detectable?

I am feeling a bit better though, I thought it was Mareks at first, before I thought about it and realized there is an incubation period. I bought some birds at a swap this fall and they died as soon as it got cold and I have been worried that I may have brought something in to my flock. They were housed seperately, but, you never know. I will NEVER buy a bird again, watching those beautiful little chicks die was so horrible and I was powerless to stop it. I have not had the experience of losing birds in a group like that, it is so scary!

 

[Dee Dee 2]

This whole thing is a sad mystery. There are 1000's of things that can kill chickens, most of which we never determine. I hope this does not deter you from raising chickens. You said you would never but chicks again. Are you going to incubate ? I also learned the hard way NEVER buy chickens from a swap meet or someplace similar OR an individual. I only order chicks from a hatchery with an excellent RESEARCHED reputation. Were these birds vaccinated for Maricks ? at one day old ? Something else I learned ~ the hard way. The fun of having chickens is like life. You have to take the bad with the good. The joy with the sad.