In Serious Need Of Opinions! Help!

[Reyvaughn]

Okay...
I don't know where to start. I already have two other posts that I am not getting any help with. I seem to have something spreading through my flock and I don't know what it is or what to do for it!

I currently have two pullets in the house in cat carriers. I have a 30wk old EE pullet that has stinky diarrhea, slightly lethargic and shows a lack of interest in food - but does eat. The other is an 18wk old SpLRW that almost died of cocci (was in the death position, no use of legs, no head control, ect) and now eats, drinks and stands on her own again, but after 5 days, she's still sick. I also have a 27.5wk old SS pullet who has a floppy tail. I have lost two others that start with the droopy tail, then stops eating and then stands around in a upright position with eyes closed and just waste away and die. The last one wasn't found right away (took us a few hours to find her) and she was just covered in maggots in a relatively short period of time. I also have a Sebright who's been sneezing and gaping for three weeks. I wormed her 10 days ago (tonight is 2nd dose night) and she isn't showing any improvement. She's eating, is active and otherwise seems normal (no discharges). I noticed a couple of my other girls are sneezing the same as her - this just started in the last couple of days. I noticed another one of my 23wk old Silkies has bad diarrhea and another EE had diarrhea.

They eat pullet grower and medicated starter w/ all day free ranging. They have free choice to oyster shell and grit. They get about 2-3lbs of scratch a day. Bedding is pine shavings. There are no chemicals or changes (other than the temps and the amount of rain we've gotten). I've been fighting with individual cases of cocci all summer because of how wet it's been, but otherwise everyone has been healthy.

What is wrong with my flock?!
I had to euthanize my first chicken today. She had a slipped tendon that wouldn't stay and then began gaping. She hasn't been out of the hen shed for over a week and I decided enough was enough.

 

[heatherkh]

For the one with stinky diarrhea, I'd make sure it has ACV in it's water if you don't have it already (and if you aren't already medicating it's water for something else), and start giving it some plain yogurt, or feed mixed with yogurt (I often have to thin this out with water because the feed expands so much). Anything that's good for it's belly. See if you can't get the poop normalized.

I'm sorry for all your struggles and wish I had some advice for you. I hope someone else will. In the very least, I feel like I'd also want to get all the chickens out of the coop and give it a good cleaning.

 

[Reyvaughn]

At the moment they are getting Corrid in their water and I am feeding them hard boiled egg and yogurt everyday - this is for the two inside, not the other half dozen outside that's sick.

The one with diarrhea had pretty much stopped eating. Last night she didn't eat her egg but ate her yogurt. Today she's refusing both. She's really worrying be because she isn't getting better and until today, wasn't really getting worse either. The SpLRW is getting much better. She's diving into her food with a lot of vigor!

Yes, a coop cleaning in on the agenda. It isn't to bad, but I want to get it done. With hurricane Irene, the back half of the shed flooded and I did scrape out the wet stuff, but who knows how bad it really was (shed's a large 22x12 and I scraped out half of it and put new bedding down).

 

[PAchickenlover]

Hi sorry I can't help you but I have also been fighting sickness with my chickens. I put two roo's down last week. I had tried and tried to get them better with no success do like you I decided enough was enough. I sure hope you can find some answers, and me too. I am tired of haveing sick birds! Good luck!
Mollie

 

[CheekyChicky44]

Do they have access to some potentially toxic plants? My chickens in the summer started eating some vegetation that was not favorable to them because some of the other greenery was dying off. They were dining on foxglove, english ivy, and night shade that had popped up along the fence line, and had messy vents and were lethargic. My mother was actually the one to notice that they were eating it when she was house sitting, and left them in the run instead of letting them out and that seemed to help. Just a thought, I was surprised that they would eat something that would make them sick but was glad to figure out what was causing their messy vents.
Here is the link that we found about that: http://www.poultryhelp.com/toxicplants.html
If it’s not related to their diet. I would try plain yogurt and electrolyte water. I hope everything turns out well, and your chickens feel better.

 

[florida lee]

Rey...... sounds as if your doing everything you can do. I would suggest that when you clean the coop you wet everything down with OXINE. Allow to dry before letting the chickens back in. I use it with every coop cleaning. If your not familiar with it, google it , its great stuff.
If you have ACV in their water make sure its the kind with mother in it, Braggs is a good brand.
good luck

 

[Reyvaughn]

As far as I know, they have no access to anything deadly to them in the plant department. It is weird that only the ones in the hen shed (this means housing, waterer, feeder, nest box and foraging are all different than the others) are getting sick. The EE in the house has been out of the shed for 5 days and there has been no change in her health until today - she stopped eating.

I lost a Silkie pullet today. I thought she was broody - I turned her over and there was a messy backside. I am getting very upset over all of this.

I noticed my double walled metal waterer is getting rusty already - it's only been 4 months - and the water gets really rust colored fast. Would that make them sick?

The 18 chickens not in that hen shed and allowed free ranging are all healthy and have no issues at all... It has to be something they are getting into, the bedding, waterer or something like that.

ETA:
Actually, according to that crazy list, chickens shouldn't be allowed to free range at all! Oh my gosh! I have apple trees, elderberries, milkweed, clovers, fescue, buckwheat...

 

[Reyvaughn]

I woke up to a dead 21wk old buff Orpington.
I didn't even know she was sick. I noticed yesterday that one of my BOs briefly sat hunched up like the typical cocci stance, but she literally was in the position for only a couple of seconds and she was back to foraging.

I need to find the cause of these deaths and then I need to start worrying about replacing chickens. I have lost 4 chickens in two days (one processed, one euthanized and two sick).

 

[CMV]

I'd send some of the bodies in for necropsy. Your state lab can help you out with this. We can offer suggestions and advice, but we would only be guessing at the problem(s). A necropsy would tell you for sure what is going on.

Your waterer that is rusting- you are not putting ACV in it are you? Galvanized waterers can't have acidic contents or it leaches harmful chemicals into the water.

I hope this helps. Good luck.

 

[Reyvaughn]

Nope, no ACV in the waterer.

I don't even know where to start/who to call for a necropsy. I know a state vet, but I have no idea who or how to find one. And, they all have different symptoms. Unless it is all cocci related.
We are stripping the hen shed today. I have no Oxine, so I can't disinfect with that.