my chickens are dying and i have no idea why please help!!!

[Kaitlyn Hancock]

help I have a coop and pen with about 10 chickens in it with two ducks. I went to check on them about mid afternoon yesterday and one of my silkie roosters was in the corner of the pen with his eyes shut. I opened it up to check on him and he was pretty much lifeless all he would do is open his eyes. I checked on him through out the rest of the day and he never moved. went out today and he was dead in the spot he was at last night. I was counting and looking over my other chickens and noticed one of my cochin/silkie hens wasn't out, opened the coop and she was in her nesting box dead also. it has been hot the past couple days around 100 or so. is it just the heat or do they have a diseases. they are given fresh water through out the day when it is that hot out. please help before I loose anymore. one day they are fine the next dead.

 

[mightymax]

I am so very sorry for your losses. Are there any other signs or symptoms you could describe to us? Like if they're eating, drinking, pooping, etc., and if any of these things have become abnormal recently?

 

[Kaitlyn Hancock]

yes they are all eating and drinking fine. poop is fine and normal looking. my hen was just fine last night when I checked in on them she was roosted on the side of her nesting box and this morning she was dead in it. they both looked like the just dropped over dead. the hen was only about a year old and the rooster was about 2 I believe

 

[the chickflick]

could be heat strokes. next time this happens, feed some plain yoghurt. dip them in water, no cold nor warm. this should cool them down wihin some time. if it doest get better they arent having heat strokes

 

[gander007]

Let me ask you this ....

Are you adding anything to the water ??????



Have you looked under the feathers to check for critters taking up a new home ????



Do you soak their feed in water at all ??????



Is there any weight loss at all .......

 

[bucky52]

do they have shade.it was in the 90's with high humidity here in VA.yesterday.My girls have shady Runs.and I have farm fans.blasting away in their runs.and the poor things were still panting and holding their wings out.my guess it is the heat.

 

[Sarevan]

Sorry for your losses. We just went through some 100+ degree heat this is what we did for or chickens to help them through the heat.

Took milk jugs filled part way with water and froze them and put them in run they would lean againt the jugs, sprayed down run so they could dig down to cool dirt (they lounged around a lot), added more shade for them, filled extra waterers if one was in sun they wouldn't drink from it at all even if only one available. They refused to drink warm or sun heated water. So gave them cool water regularly. Opened up coop to allow as much air exchange as possible, I thought it felt stagnant and oppressive to me was worse for them because of their higher body temperature. We gave them weeds to eat, melon, wet feed to increase water intake. Most importantly added electrolytes to water to prevent dehydration. Also added a shallow pan of cool water a couple inches deep, they would stand in it, even bathe play in it to wet feathers! Strawbales around run on outside of the run were soaked with water to give some radiant cooling.

Our 1 year Olds are mixed flock Welsummer, California Greys, EE'S and BO roo. The 5 month olds are all BO. They all made it through the hottest day so far this summer of 105 degrees!! They were most active in the cool mornings and evening when it began to cool down. This was when they would eat the most. They did drop off eating as much as they normally would and drank much more. Egg laying dropped a bit, all did continue to lay just not normal schedule. During the heat the 5 month Olds started to lay, the added heat stress didn't seem to have hurt them.

I am sorry for your losses. I hope that the things I do for our chickens in extreme heat gives you ideas on how to help your chickens.

 

[Kaitlyn Hancock]

nope I have not added anything to their water. I live in northern mo they did great last summer. I looked them over seen nothing in their feathers. I feed them the layer pellets and I give them a little cracked corn and fruit and veggie left overs.i have never soaked their food. their coop and run is built out back under all the trees where it is mainly shaded all day. they other chickens and the two ducks are outside pecking around. they are not panting or anything they have three containers of nice fresh water plus a little kiddie pool for the ducks, although I don't believe they use it to swim. they have ventilation in the coop. I just cant figure it out. I also have another coop on the other side of the yard with about 100 chickens in it and they are all fine none of them have died. and also have a pair of peafowl and they are doing fine.