Please help :(

[aldanfac]

Oh... that quail died. We weren't really prepared at that time, but from what I have seen, force feeding is like sticking a tube down the chicken's throat and forcing liquid food down. I just don't know if it might choke you chickens...

Sorry about your quail this sucks! He did just start eating fry crumble out of my hand! Does this sound promising

 

[aldanfac]

He is eating and drinking!!! and becoming a bit more lively it also seems like his feathers are a little more normal? I have no clue what it going on but does this sound like hopeful? At least to make it to the morning so I can treat him with some stuff, should I get corid or something else?! Ah I am going through it he’s so sweet its always the sweetest ones

 

[aldanfac]

Update: He didn’t make it through the night. I am so sad but I really need to start prepping to make sure his siblings are ok… their keel is also a little out but not like this one was.. they are also still active and happy do I treat with corid? I need some advice on what I should do. I am going to try to get a necropsy but I don’t know how realistic that is for me at the moment

 

[aldanfac]

Update: Just dosed the other chicks water with 2.2 ml liquid corid, I want to clean my coop right now but we are in the middle of a terrible storm I moved them into a container inside their coop so they aren’t in their old bedding but what else can I do and what is the best way to clean? I read boiling water is best but does anyone have any tips for me, I will appreciate anything even just if anyone has some awesome survivor stories of their chicks doing good, just need some hope I feel like the worst chicken mom ever and I know this is common but I just can’t help beating myself up for not noticing sooner to save that poor baby

 

[FunClucks]

Update: Just dosed the other chicks water with 2.2 ml liquid corid, I want to clean my coop right now but we are in the middle of a terrible storm I moved them into a container inside their coop so they aren’t in their old bedding but what else can I do and what is the best way to clean? I read boiling water is best but does anyone have any tips for me, I will appreciate anything even just if anyone has some awesome survivor stories of their chicks doing good, just need some hope I feel like the worst chicken mom ever and I know this is common but I just can’t help beating myself up for not noticing sooner to save that poor baby

I'm sorry your baby died. These things happen. I have cleaned plastic tub brooders with vinegar solution (vinegar plus water), straight vinegar (wear gloves!), soap and water (my favorite, but wet), and clorox antibacterial spray. Make sure you air the brooder out well so there are no fumes your chicks will breathe once you're done cleaning.

Have you been giving them chick grit? Sprinkle it on their food or provide a small container of it. If they are on shavings or have been outside, or are eating anything besides commercial feed, they need grit to digest their food, or they could have an obstruction and die.

If the others are not looking as bad, this is good news. Don't beat yourself up, just figure out how to do better in the future. We've all made mistakes when learning to keep chickens.

 

[aldanfac]

I'm sorry your baby died. These things happen. I have cleaned plastic tub brooders with vinegar solution (vinegar plus water), straight vinegar (wear gloves!), soap and water (my favorite, but wet), and clorox antibacterial spray. Make sure you air the brooder out well so there are no fumes your chicks will breathe once you're done cleaning.

Have you been giving them chick grit? Sprinkle it on their food or provide a small container of it. If they are on shavings or have been outside, or are eating anything besides commercial feed, they need grit to digest their food, or they could have an obstruction and die.

If the others are not looking as bad, this is good news. Don't beat yourself up, just figure out how to do better in the future. We've all made mistakes when learning to keep chickens.

I deep cleaned all day! vinegar and soapy water plus boiling water… that was crazy but so well worth it! it seems the other babies that were with the one who passed before I removed him are doing so much better.. I decided to do preventive meds in all my chickens water just to be safe and seems like things are looking up, praying for no more losses and think i’ll be good for tonight at least. The little guy who didn’t make it was in terrible shape by this time yesterday so I am pretty hopeful.. my only worry is that I still have wood shavings as the bedding and used up all I have left to redo the coop because I want better bedding, do you have good recommendations? I feel like that’s partially to blame for this outbreak since that stuff sucks and absorbes so much bacteria

 

[aldanfac]

I'm sorry your baby died. These things happen. I have cleaned plastic tub brooders with vinegar solution (vinegar plus water), straight vinegar (wear gloves!), soap and water (my favorite, but wet), and clorox antibacterial spray. Make sure you air the brooder out well so there are no fumes your chicks will breathe once you're done cleaning.

Have you been giving them chick grit? Sprinkle it on their food or provide a small container of it. If they are on shavings or have been outside, or are eating anything besides commercial feed, they need grit to digest their food, or they could have an obstruction and die.

If the others are not looking as bad, this is good news. Don't beat yourself up, just figure out how to do better in the future. We've all made mistakes when learning to keep chickens.

They also are all on medicated crumble for the time being should I switch that up?

 

[FunClucks]

I deep cleaned all day! vinegar and soapy water plus boiling water… that was crazy but so well worth it! it seems the other babies that were with the one who passed before I removed him are doing so much better.. I decided to do preventive meds in all my chickens water just to be safe and seems like things are looking up, praying for no more losses and think i’ll be good for tonight at least. The little guy who didn’t make it was in terrible shape by this time yesterday so I am pretty hopeful.. my only worry is that I still have wood shavings as the bedding and used up all I have left to redo the coop because I want better bedding, do you have good recommendations? I feel like that’s partially to blame for this outbreak since that stuff sucks and absorbes so much bacteria

I buy the bagged Pine medium Flake wood shavings from TSC, and check them thoroughly to see if they're damp before purchase. That's what I use in my brooders. If I hatch chicks, I might use papertowels at first for a day or so, but then the wood shavings. If I get chicks in the mail or from the store, I use shavings, cause they're not newborns. I found that sprinkling their food with grit, or mixing a small amount into the feeder for a week or so, then providing a separate grit container after that gave me comfort that when they eat the shavings (no way around it really), they'll be able to ground them down and pass them out the other end. If you think about it, when they're raised by a broody hen outside, they would naturally be eating grit anyway, and anything else momma told them was good to eat.

I haven't really had a problem keeping my brooders dry, and that's the key to preventing growth of mold and many bacteria. I found that if, when the chicks are sleeping in their pile, they take up more than 1/4 of the brooder space, IMO the brooder is too small, and the shavings may have a harder time handling the manure load (drying out the poo). For eggers, which is what you have, I either keep a 1" fluffed layer and change them every day or so (they compress almost flat) or I keep 2-3" deep and change them every few days, or once a week, whenever they seem like there's a lot of poo. I place my chick waterers up on top of inverted glass pie plates or casserole dishes to keep them up off the litter, and put shelf liner under if needed to prevent them from sliding. Sometimes, depending on the waterer, I'll actually place it inside a pie dish or other container right side up so the dish catches any overflowed water. Gotta keep it dry and change the shavings asap when they get wet.

I hate chick waterers! They are always getting nasty. At 4 weeks, I transition my chicks to a horizontal nipple waterer (I put the nipples [Roosty's brand orange ones with a backing screw are my favorite for thin walled containers] in a 1 gallon pretzel or cheese puff plastic container from Rural King for example, make sure you make a small hole at the top to prevent it holding a vacuum, and test for leaks after you get the nipples into the container). I found 4 wks is the youngest they're strong enough to use them, but I've not had any trouble training them. I peck the metal posts with my finger "beak" to let the water out. There's always one chick who's curious enough and thirsty enough and leads the way, and the others learn by example. I wire these waterers to the side of the cage so they don't tip over and elevate them on blocks of wood or inverted bowls and such depending on the chick height. I love horizontal nipple waters! They give a constant source of clean, fresh water, and no more leaks in the brooder or constant water changes!!!

I don't know what's wrong with your chicks. But if you're feeding amprolium (CORID) to treat for coccidiosis, feed them unmedicated chick starter and do NOT feed them any type of vitamins (Nutridrench, Rooster Booster, etc). There is a specific B vitamin (I think it's thiamine?) that the coccidiosis needs to live, and the CORID removes that from being available, which is what gets the coccidiosis out of the chicks's system. Once the chick is stronger from not having to deal with coccidiosis, they will deal with it again (it's everywhere outside) and because they had a chance to strengthen their bodies (thank you CORID), they will use their immune response to not let it affect them the next time they encounter it. You just have to get them through the first exposure and build up their immune response without them being overwhelmed by too much of it, and then for the rest of their lives they'll be fine, unless they encounter a different strain (happens occasionally but not super often is my understanding), in which case the process repeats itself with the new strain of coccidiosis, and you can re-treat with CORID if needed. This is my "I'm not an expert but did a lot of reading and treated my chicks a year ago" synopsis.

I hope your chicks continue to do well! Sending you best wishes!!!

 

[aldanfac]

I buy the bagged Pine medium Flake wood shavings from TSC, and check them thoroughly to see if they're damp before purchase. That's what I use in my brooders. If I hatch chicks, I might use papertowels at first for a day or so, but then the wood shavings. If I get chicks in the mail or from the store, I use shavings, cause they're not newborns. I found that sprinkling their food with grit, or mixing a small amount into the feeder for a week or so, then providing a separate grit container after that gave me comfort that when they eat the shavings (no way around it really), they'll be able to ground them down and pass them out the other end. If you think about it, when they're raised by a broody hen outside, they would naturally be eating grit anyway, and anything else momma told them was good to eat.

I haven't really had a problem keeping my brooders dry, and that's the key to preventing growth of mold and many bacteria. I found that if, when the chicks are sleeping in their pile, they take up more than 1/4 of the brooder space, IMO the brooder is too small, and the shavings may have a harder time handling the manure load (drying out the poo). For eggers, which is what you have, I either keep a 1" fluffed layer and change them every day or so (they compress almost flat) or I keep 2-3" deep and change them every few days, or once a week, whenever they seem like there's a lot of poo. I place my chick waterers up on top of inverted glass pie plates or casserole dishes to keep them up off the litter, and put shelf liner under if needed to prevent them from sliding. Sometimes, depending on the waterer, I'll actually place it inside a pie dish or other container right side up so the dish catches any overflowed water. Gotta keep it dry and change the shavings asap when they get wet.

I hate chick waterers! They are always getting nasty. At 4 weeks, I transition my chicks to a horizontal nipple waterer (I put the nipples [Roosty's brand orange ones with a backing screw are my favorite for thin walled containers] in a 1 gallon pretzel or cheese puff plastic container from Rural King for example, make sure you make a small hole at the top to prevent it holding a vacuum, and test for leaks after you get the nipples into the container). I found 4 wks is the youngest they're strong enough to use them, but I've not had any trouble training them. I peck the metal posts with my finger "beak" to let the water out. There's always one chick who's curious enough and thirsty enough and leads the way, and the others learn by example. I wire these waterers to the side of the cage so they don't tip over and elevate them on blocks of wood or inverted bowls and such depending on the chick height. I love horizontal nipple waters! They give a constant source of clean, fresh water, and no more leaks in the brooder or constant water changes!!!

I don't know what's wrong with your chicks. But if you're feeding amprolium (CORID) to treat for coccidiosis, feed them unmedicated chick starter and do NOT feed them any type of vitamins (Nutridrench, Rooster Booster, etc). There is a specific B vitamin (I think it's thiamine?) that the coccidiosis needs to live, and the CORID removes that from being available, which is what gets the coccidiosis out of the chicks's system. Once the chick is stronger from not having to deal with coccidiosis, they will deal with it again (it's everywhere outside) and because they had a chance to strengthen their bodies (thank you CORID), they will use their immune response to not let it affect them the next time they encounter it. You just have to get them through the first exposure and build up their immune response without them being overwhelmed by too much of it, and then for the rest of their lives they'll be fine, unless they encounter a different strain (happens occasionally but not super often is my understanding), in which case the process repeats itself with the new strain of coccidiosis, and you can re-treat with CORID if needed. This is my "I'm not an expert but did a lot of reading and treated my chicks a year ago" synopsis.

I hope your chicks continue to do well! Sending you best wishes!!!

This is so awesome you’re amazing! I am going to the store tomorrow and changing A LOT! I’m so glad you told me about the medicated feed because I kept seeing a lot of different opinions but your explanation to why it’s not good makes so much sense!! Thank you Thank you Thank you!!! I feel like I’ve learned the most right now in these threads today and that my babies have a good chance, I will keep you all updated on their condition and how everything is going!

 

[GoldenBlossoms]

Try feeding it wet cat or dog food. best if it is a vet-type food, we give it to our sick chickens and it seems to work wonders.