my chicken are dying and i dont know why..?!? HELP

[farmgirl10]

i had 60 chickens that i purchased as day old chicks and everything has been fine up until this point. i got 30 white leghorns and 30 rhode island reds. for some odd reason that i cant figure out is that i now have 53? chickens and i only have this many because my reds just die with no signs of sickness that i can notice. there has been 5 that have died in the last 2 weeks and i dont have a clue why.but its just my reds and when i ordered them they were vaccinated for mereks disease. i have only had 2 leghorns die when they were peeps because they were the runts and they got killed by the others. and now the leghorns are laying their pullet eggs. when the first red died she showed signs of sickeness because she just laid there and wouldnt get up and the next day she was dead but these others just die with no visable signs. if someone could help me i would greatly appreciate it.

 

[nzpouter]

How long is until this point?

 

[CANDLE98]

How old are they

 

[timbofarms]

Make sure all are eating and drinking. Sometime birds will get pushed away. I don't know what the weather is like where you are but if temps go down to cold some low pecking order birds will get run out of the coop and away from food and water when they get over crowded.
Just something to watch for. I'm sorry your loosing birds and wish you luck.

 

[ThePamperedPullet]

You say there are no signs but are their wings droopy? what does their poo look like? change in diet? age? dying during the day or night or both? rattle when they breathe? are they eating and drinking normal? any feather loss?
Look for the little things. Sometimes it doesn't have to be anything really big that will kill them. It sounds like it is a viral thing and is being passed. Are the RIR together with the leghorns or seperate?

 

[maymiegirl]

Totally agree Pamperedpullet. I recommend keeping them separated. Pamperedpullet is right on--those are my same instincts. Grab up some Probiotics for them -- Tractor Supply has dry Probiotics for Goats at about $10 a tub...it works great. If their combs look a bit pale, step up their red blood cells. Red Cell for horses is very affordable and at 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons should help them to build up their blood and immune systems affordably until you get this straightened out.

 

[sammi]

are they too crowded?
how old are they?
what temp are you keeping them at?
is the feed getting eaten up?
what bedding are you using?

check the droppings..color and consistency..