Kefir for pasty butt?

[turtlemh]

Has anyone tried feeding kefir for pasty butt? It's 99% lactose free. I drink it and my immune system has never been better. I have one chick that has it bad but she/he is able to poop after I clean it. Any thoughts?

 

[azjustin]

I haven't tried kefir, but liberally trimming the fluff above and below the vent ends 100% of PB for us.

High heat in the brooder will also cause PB like crazy, something to keep in mind.

Good luck.

 

[3riverschick]

I haven't tried kefir, but liberally trimming the fluff above and below the vent ends 100% of PB for us.

High heat in the brooder will also cause PB like crazy, something to keep in mind.

Good luck.

Give the chick a bit of molasses. It acts like a laxative for birds.
Best,
Karen

 

[aart]

Has anyone tried feeding kefir for pasty butt? It's 99% lactose free. I drink it and my immune system has never been better. I have one chick that has it bad but she/he is able to poop after I clean it. Any thoughts?

I'd look for the cause(too much heat, not eating starter) before 'treating' with odd things.
How old is chick and how many times have you had to clean it's butt?

 

[turtlemh]

I received the 11 chicks Thursday. Only 1 has the pasty butt. I just picked him up now and he/she pooped all over me. So I hope it's better? Gave them a scrambled egg today which they all loved. The one is eating and drinking a lot so I hope it was just the stress of shipping.

I have the chicks in a large Guinea pig cage in a small bathroom with a window. Window is open at night when we don't have the ac on. Temp says 95 under the light.

 

[aart]

I received the 11 chicks Thursday. Only 1 has the pasty butt. I just picked him up now and he/she pooped all over me. So I hope it's better? Gave them a scrambled egg today which they all loved. The one is eating and drinking a lot so I hope it was just the stress of shipping.

I have the chicks in a large Guinea pig cage in a small bathroom with a window. Window is open at night when we don't have the ac on. Temp says 95 under the light.

Checking vents on chicks everyday for the first few days is SOP, make sure they are not pasted over.
Clean any stuck poop off down around vent.

How big is cage.....inches by inches?

95 is too hot.

Here's my notes on chick heat, hope something in there might help:
They need to be pretty warm(~85-90F on the brooder floor right under the lamp and 10-20 degrees cooler at the other end of brooder) for the first day or two, especially if they have been shipped, until they get to eating, drinking and moving around well. But after that it's best to keep them as cool as possible for optimal feather growth and quicker acclimation to outside temps. A lot of chick illnesses are attributed to too warm of a brooder. I do think it's a good idea to use a thermometer on the floor of the brooder to check the temps, especially when new at brooding, later I still use it but more out of curiosity than need.

The best indicator of heat levels is to watch their behavior:
If they are huddled/piled up right under the lamp and cheeping very loudly, they are too cold.
If they are spread out on the absolute edges of the brooder as far from the lamp as possible, panting and/or cheeping very loudly, they are too hot.
If they sleep around the edge of the lamp calmly just next to each other and spend time running all around the brooder they are juuuust right!

The lamp is best at one end of the brooder with food/water at the other cooler end of the brooder, so they can get away from the heat or be under it as needed. Wattage of 'heat' bulb depends on size of brooder and ambient temperature of room brooder is in. Regular incandescent bulbs can be used, you might not need a 'heat bulb'. You can get red colored incandescent bulbs at a reptile supply source. A dimmer extension cord is an excellent way to adjust the output of the bulb to change the heat without changing the height of the lamp.


Or you could go with a heat plate, commercially made or DIY: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/pseudo-brooder-heater-plate

 

[turtlemh]

This is my set up. During the day they are all running around and usually sleep in the middle. At night they go under the light because it gets in the low 70's. Everywhere I read it said for the first week keep at 95. Even my themother says so. Not sure the dimensions of the cage but I think it's for bunnies and Guineas. Bought it 10 years ago for a tortoise.

 

[aart]

This is my set up. During the day they are all running around and usually sleep in the middle. At night they go under the light because it gets in the low 70's. Everywhere I read it said for the first week keep at 95. Even my themother says so. Not sure the dimensions of the cage but I think it's for bunnies and Guineas. Bought it 10 years ago for a tortoise.

The '95 degrees first week and 5 less each week after that' rule of thumb is getting to be old school technique.
First day you want to keep them good and warm while you assess their health but after that it's best to keep them cooler or you get pasty butts.
Keeping one end of the brooder 10-20 degrees cooler is important.
Best to adjust your heat by their behavior(as I described above) and keep them as cool as possible, they will be healthier and feather out faster.
I used a dimmer extension cord to adjust the heat lamp output when I used a heat lamp.

That cage is only going to hold them for about a week, maybe two....do you have a larger enclosure ready for them?

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I received the 11 chicks Thursday. Only 1 has the pasty butt. I just picked him up now and he/she pooped all over me. So I hope it's better? Gave them a scrambled egg today which they all loved. The one is eating and drinking a lot so I hope it was just the stress of shipping.

I have the chicks in a large Guinea pig cage in a small bathroom with a window. Window is open at night when we don't have the ac on. Temp says 95 under the light.

Chicks eat hard boiled eggs like they were going out of style and there is none of the oils or grease that can loosen the stool in a HBE like there is in a scrambled egg. Also some un-cooked "OLD FASHION ROLLED" oats is relished by chicks of all ages and besides UN-COOKED OLD FASHION ROLLED OATS is good to firm up the bowels.

PS: You can safely feed the shell and all when giving your chicks Hard Boiled Eggs. Just mash the HBE up or crumble it well, then top the HBE with UN-COOKED OLD-FASHION ROLLED OATS. It won't take long before you will have to carry a broom around with you to keep the baby chicks at bay when they hear you coming because they will all be expecting more HBE and un-cooked, old-fashion, rolled, oats.