- Jul 29, 2011
- 74
- 0
- 39
Hi, I'm new to this forum and am desperate for help/answers!
H had a flock of chickens in the past and am on my second now. I had 5 buff orpingtons but lost one a couple of weeks ago. I believe she died from the heat. They all are a year old. My first time around I got all my chicks from Mc Murray Hatchery. They were free range birds but I wont' do that again since I lost many of them due to predators. I then would go out just to find a dead chicken periodically and always felt bad because I never knew what happened.
We got our buffs last year and never had any issues with them as chicks.
Now I have new chicks, all bought at a chicken swap. I've had a frizzle and a buff for 3 - 4 weeks and then we went back to the swap and got a Polish, two more frizzles, and a sizzle (silkie/frizzle) and they all have been fine.
Wednesday night in the barn I thought the one buff seemed somewhat tired and just figured it was because it was around 10:00 at night. We were gone all day/night yesterday and last night fed/watered animals in barn around midnight. She was walking around, eating, but I didn't pay much attention to her because I was exhausted.
Today she is dead! I'm SO upset about this! She was such a sweet little chick. MY daughter would push her and another around in a stroller, the frizzle, and they were the best of friends! Because this little buff was so sweet, but the original frizzle picked on the Polish, I would put the buff in with the other chicks during the day and have her sleep with the frizzle at night. I was trying to incorporate them all together. BUT, now that this little buff is dead, I'm SO afraid I spread what ever she had to the other chicks!
I inspected her well (which broke my heart!) and she had a red thickish discharge coming out of her. It was in the feed bowl, too. I immediately removed the feed/water bowl and put the frizzle into a different cage. The feed bowl is rubber. Should I throw it out now? I'm going to wash the plastic water dish in hot soapy water, and will also wash the food/water in the other chick's cage and I will take out all bedding, bleach, then put new hay in. In the other chicks cage the water bowl is rubber. Should this be thrown out? I think I've heard the rubber absorbs stuff.
I'm terrified that since we took this sweet buff and placed her with all the chicks, I'm so afraid I'm going to lose them all! Especially the sweet, sweet frizzle she spent most of her time with, although she's spent a few days with the other chicks. All were on medicated chick starter.
Does anyone have ANY idea what she could have had? And is there anything I can do to help my other chicks? I will be just so devastated if something happens to them!
I'm off to go clean/change cages and will check back.
thanks!
oh, one more thing. Like I said, we've had the chicks for weeks and I can't remember how old they were when I got them. T he one who died was about 6 inches from head to tail and had a full set of feathers when we got her.
H had a flock of chickens in the past and am on my second now. I had 5 buff orpingtons but lost one a couple of weeks ago. I believe she died from the heat. They all are a year old. My first time around I got all my chicks from Mc Murray Hatchery. They were free range birds but I wont' do that again since I lost many of them due to predators. I then would go out just to find a dead chicken periodically and always felt bad because I never knew what happened.
We got our buffs last year and never had any issues with them as chicks.
Now I have new chicks, all bought at a chicken swap. I've had a frizzle and a buff for 3 - 4 weeks and then we went back to the swap and got a Polish, two more frizzles, and a sizzle (silkie/frizzle) and they all have been fine.
Wednesday night in the barn I thought the one buff seemed somewhat tired and just figured it was because it was around 10:00 at night. We were gone all day/night yesterday and last night fed/watered animals in barn around midnight. She was walking around, eating, but I didn't pay much attention to her because I was exhausted.
Today she is dead! I'm SO upset about this! She was such a sweet little chick. MY daughter would push her and another around in a stroller, the frizzle, and they were the best of friends! Because this little buff was so sweet, but the original frizzle picked on the Polish, I would put the buff in with the other chicks during the day and have her sleep with the frizzle at night. I was trying to incorporate them all together. BUT, now that this little buff is dead, I'm SO afraid I spread what ever she had to the other chicks!
I inspected her well (which broke my heart!) and she had a red thickish discharge coming out of her. It was in the feed bowl, too. I immediately removed the feed/water bowl and put the frizzle into a different cage. The feed bowl is rubber. Should I throw it out now? I'm going to wash the plastic water dish in hot soapy water, and will also wash the food/water in the other chick's cage and I will take out all bedding, bleach, then put new hay in. In the other chicks cage the water bowl is rubber. Should this be thrown out? I think I've heard the rubber absorbs stuff.
I'm terrified that since we took this sweet buff and placed her with all the chicks, I'm so afraid I'm going to lose them all! Especially the sweet, sweet frizzle she spent most of her time with, although she's spent a few days with the other chicks. All were on medicated chick starter.
Does anyone have ANY idea what she could have had? And is there anything I can do to help my other chicks? I will be just so devastated if something happens to them!
I'm off to go clean/change cages and will check back.
thanks!
oh, one more thing. Like I said, we've had the chicks for weeks and I can't remember how old they were when I got them. T he one who died was about 6 inches from head to tail and had a full set of feathers when we got her.
