Pheasant chicks dropping like flies!! Help!!

[Cloverleaf Farm]

I hatched 34 pheasant chicks about 14 days ago. They have all done great, even the one with curled toes that could barely stand at hatch - I can't even tell which one that is any more. Problem is, they started dying yesterday. First, it was 5 of them, last night there were 2 that looked so-so, but everyone else was fine. This morning when I got up, there were 12 more dead, and 2 looking so-so.

The only thing I can think of is that when I cleaned out their brooder about 4 days ago, I put them into a large crate that has had chickens in it before (though it had been several days since any were in it, and very little, if any, poo in it) and they were only in it for about 10 minutes, tops....is that long enough for whatever "chicken germs" there were to affect them this much??

The other pheasant chicks are pecking at the dead ones, but there aren't any wounds on any of them to say that they were killed by the others....

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

Nobody has any ideas??

Two more have died since I made the original post, so I just went and cleaned out their brooder again, just in case...I didn't notice anything weird. This time when I put them into the crate, I made sure it was all cleaned out and had fresh shavings in it. By the time I put them back into the brooder, they were all weak and lethargic, and huddled under the heat lamp. A few are eating, but not all. And a few of them are doing a weird gulping thing, not open mouthed, just that their head bobs up like they are trying to swallow...??

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

And another one...

 

[tigerrrrrrrlilly]

what type of shavings are you using? Is it possible they may have eaten it? Did you check their crop area?

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

Pine, just like I would for my chicks, out of the same bag in fact. No impacted crops. I just checked on them again, and there aren't any that look like they are about to keel over right now, so maybe things are looking up...

 

[CoopCrazy]

I wish i could help.. Have you changed anything else about they daily life .. Food? Moved Brooder? New bag of shavings?

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

Thanks, no, nothing has changed. The one thing that I thought may have started it was that I did turn off the brooder light for about 3 hours yesterday, as it was really hot the last couple of days here, and the house was going to be closed up for that time, I didn't want to cook them (yet). I did the same for my chicks that are the same age - they were grateful, the pheasants were dying. I turned their light back on right away, but if you've read this far, you already know the rest...

 

[tigerrrrrrrlilly]

Sorry wish I could help, I had a similar situation recently and lost 4 chicks, one died in my hand, 2 more were nearly dead, by the next day the 2 turned out fine. Never figured out what happened or why.

 

[shelleyd2008]

I wish I could help, I have terrible luck with pheasants. Look under my friends list on facebook and find JJ or Mike, they have experience with pheasants, I'm sure they'd be able to help you

 

[Scott]

Sorry to hear about your loss. Sounds like something viral or bacterial to me. Are they kept near chickens? Pheasants, and particularly pheasant chicks, are suceptible to several chicken diseases.