Oh No!!! Disaster!!!!!!!! :'(

[Stina]

My hubby and I went on vacation for 3 days (left Sunday night, returned tonight)....I left a big old waterer and full thing of food for the chickies in my brooder....when I came back there was plenty of water left and a little bit of food that looked accessible......but 4 of my chickies are dead!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't know what happened to them!!!! They didn't look injured in any way or anything...they were just dead....including 2 of my silver laced polish and the serama roo and buff laced frizzle polish that I got at Chickenstock last weekend!!!!!!

I dn't know what happened and I'm so sad!!!! Especially about my little frizzle polish...she was my chickie pride and joy! These weren't even really young babies either...the silver laced polish and the serama could have been put outside already...the frizzle polish was mostly feathered....my 2 week old chicks are all fine, as well as the 2 oldest birds....I just don't understand it and don't know what to do!

 

[Tala]

Any way they could have overheated??

Windows in their room - could the sun have come in on them and super-heated their brooder??

 

[Stina]

Front room with covered patio out front....gets light but nothing direct. It definitely got very warm in the house, but all the other animals seem fine and that is the coolest room....and the little chicks were still hanging out under the heat lamp.

My only guess is that they couldn't find the food or something?....there was only a little left and only accessible from one area of the feeder...but there was definitely still some food left?

 

[BeardedLadyFarm]

Oh no!!! So sorry to hear this. I know how you love your little chickens.

I have some buff laced polish bantam in the incubator, as well as some assorted bantam polish that will be out in a couple weeks. I'll let you know when I'm parting with some of them if you're looking for some new chicken friends.

Sorry for your loss. I can't imagine what may have gone wrong.

 

[froggie71]

Stina I'm so sorry

We have lost 4 of the 8 babies we brought home from chickenstock so far.

Not all at the same time though and ours were all very young. It is very upsetting to lose your babies.

 

[Thomas423]

Oh Stina, that is so sad. What a terrible way to come home from a get-a-way.
DH and I are starting to feel "trapped" by our chickens since we can't get away like we should be able to.
We're in the process of setting things up so we can hire a chicken-sitter to come take care on them once or twice a day so we can get away for a few days.

The chicks might have had issues seperate from you not being there. I got 2 polish chicks there and realized on the way home that they had been "boxed" up (very small box) since the day before and don't know how much food/water they received during that time. They seem to be doing ok now, but at first they just didn't act right.

Again, sorry about your loss.

 

[Stina]

The silver laced polish are birds I've had since they were 2 or 3 days old that I got from someone local 2-3 months ago.....My only guess is that it had something to do with the food. Supposedly a friend of hubby's was going to come to at least check on the guinea pigs......but Steve didn't talk to him at all the whole time we were away and I'm doubtful he talking to him immediately before we left either and he doesn't seem to have made it out at all....at least if he had come he could have made sure the feeder was full....

 

[Stina]

My last little polish chick died overnight!!!!

Everyone else is still doing great......I noticed a couple days ago that the polish seemed very lightweight and thin....but it was still eating and drinking.....it had been acting odd ever since we got back

Now I have no little polish chickies!!!!!!!