Please, help! Emergency, not a joke!!!

[azygous]

Running down the list of possibilities, we can then rul out the feed, and the water. I don't think you need to be concerned with Marek's as it doesn't become symptomatic this quickly. Cocci also rarely affects chicks so new. (Unless you got them from a disreputable source.)

Chilling is probably the most common killer of chicks. They could have been chilled as they were shipped to your source. I'm not clear on that. Did you pick them up directly from a hatchery or breeder? Or did you get them from an intermediary such as a feed or pet store? That would entail shipping.

Chilling causes shock but the chicks don't necessarily show signs of it right away. It can take a few days for them to sicken and die. As I already pointed out, some chicks, after you got them, may not have been able to warm themselves under your setup. Have you looked at that?

If you rule out all these things, if you want to know what killed these chicks, a necropsy is the only way.

 

[azygous]

I am new to chickens and I'm certain a couple of my 9 week old hens have coccidiosis. I bought some Corid, but am unsure how to make my girls drink. They're fairly sluggish and aren't getting to the waterer much, so how can I ensure they're getting the Corid down? Anything else I should be doing for them?

You may start your own thread and get your own discussion going by clicking on "start a new thread" at the top of the forum page.

But to quickly answer your question, your chicks don't need to be drinking very much water to get the benefit of the thiamine blocker that is in Corid. (It's not an antibiotic where an exact dose is necessary for it to work.)

 

[Kiki]

Very good advice, thank you! However, I do not think it's the water, for I have let other chicks drink the tap water, and they have seemed fine. I do give electrolytes the first two days for stressed chicks, and from then on mix some apple cider vinegar once in a while. Of course, this situation could have been different.

The same goes for the feed, in which I have fed many times without problems, but when they reach about five weeks of age, I switch to Nature's Best Starter/Grower Organic Feed. Is there a way to tell if the feed is rancid/spoiled/moldy? There's no moldiness anywhere, and it smells normal, like all the other DuMor feed I've fed.

And as for the fifteen chicks, I meant that I have raised 15 chicks in the plastic tote without any problems, sorry for not stating that clear enough. I apologize. I currently have ten Cornish Cross in the brooder, four having passed away. I did notice the ones that died were all a bit smaller, but there's quite a bit of room, I don't think it was that... or perhaps they were weaker, immune system wise.

Thank you very much, once again!

What is the date on the feed bad?

 

[Lokibinian]

Running down the list of possibilities, we can then rul out the feed, and the water. I don't think you need to be concerned with Marek's as it doesn't become symptomatic this quickly. Cocci also rarely affects chicks so new. (Unless you got them from a disreputable source.)

Chilling is probably the most common killer of chicks. They could have been chilled as they were shipped to your source. I'm not clear on that. Did you pick them up directly from a hatchery or breeder? Or did you get them from an intermediary such as a feed or pet store? That would entail shipping.

Chilling causes shock but the chicks don't necessarily show signs of it right away. It can take a few days for them to sicken and die. As I already pointed out, some chicks, after you got them, may not have been able to warm themselves under your setup. Have you looked at that?

If you rule out all these things, if you want to know what killed these chicks, a necropsy is the only way.

I had another die today... I picked them up from an online hatchery, Purely Poultry. They ship to my post office, where I picked them up promptly. That could have caused the deaths, I suppose. I remember when I bought ten chicks from a different hatchery, one died. I've never had this many die before, however... strange indeed. I'm not sure where to find a necropsy place in my area, I will definitely look more into that. Thanks!

What is the date on the feed bad?

The date on the bag reads, February 2018.

 

[Kiki]

Have you been able to get some Corid?

 

[Lokibinian]

Have you been able to get some Corid?

Unfortunately, no, I've been keeping an eye on the surviving chicks, they all seem happy and healthy now. I don't think it was Cocci, however. I have no idea what caused the deaths, maybe in the shipping, the smaller ones got trampled or crushed. Thank you for all your answers, everyone! The remaining ones are all energetic and peeping.

 

[GldnValleyHens]

this seems strangely similiar to what I dealt with with MY hatchery shipped chicks! 2 died after symptoms of lethargy, huddling, then progressed to lying in the bedding with eyes closed, and the last chick seemed to be gasping for breath, opening her beak and stretching out her head. So weird! I cleaned out nd sanitized the brooder and all is well now. Does anyone have a similar chick death?