Loosing chickens to what?

[Susie 01]

I have lost 5 chickens this past year. Not an epidemic but I can not get a handle on it. My husband says the rooster is always at them and he is killing them. All of a sudden I will find a lethargic chicken in the morning. She will have a hump near her tail when you are just looking at her standing there. Sometimes their wattle is really floppy which add to the listless appearance. Some have a bunch of gray pasty poop on their vent area. I used to wash it off but they have not been handled a lot and it stresses them and the others just trying to catch the one. They look just very tired. The eyes are clear with no fluid around them. Feet are good. No signs of trauma. I live in AZ and it is hot but these chickens are 4 years old and it has never bothered them before. I give them fresh water 2 times a day when it is hot. They get good scraps and egg laying pellets, with a generous amount of scratch. I give them mealy worms when I can, These now 15 out of 22 chickens have a pen that no predator can get to them that is 10 X 40 ft. We keeps the coop as clean as you can a chicken coop. They get grass from our garden and hay for nesting. We put wood ash in a spot to dust along with the sand. Their run is covered with grape vines for shade. Does anyone see what might be wrong or that I am doing wrong? Would so very much appreciate the help. Potter

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. Worms can be a real killer. Valbazen or SafeGuard Liquid Goat Wormer are good for chickens as dewormers. Check them for mites and lice which can also kill. Enteritis, and intestinal disease caused by bacteria such as C.perfringens, can cause illness and diarrhea. It is treated by many different antibiotics such as Aureomycin, Lincomycin, Gallimycin, bacitracin and others. Adding probiotics to their diet to increase the good bacteria may help prevent it. Here is a link about it: http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/pou...verview_of_necrotic_enteritis_in_poultry.html

 

[dawg53]

If you've never wormed them, it's time. I recommend valbazen, 1/2cc given orally undiluted to each bird. Then repeat dosing them again in 10 days. Valbazen slowly kills worms over several days, no need to worry about toxicity due to worm overload in the digestive tract once wormed.

 

[cafarmgirl]

Ditto what's been said so far. With multiple losses and the symptoms you describe I'd be treating for external and internal parasites and then keeping to a regular program if you aren't already. Once you've covered those bases you can go from there. If you continue to loose birds then I'd get one necropsied, some state labs do them for free. They will test for everything under the sun and then you'll have a clear answer as to what is going on in your flock.