Sick 1-2 week chicks - what disease is this?

[callieisspooky]

Last week I bought six 5-day old chicks. I housed them in my usual spot for new chicks, a cage with heat lamp/new clean straw in the barn. I didn’t pay much attention to them the first couple of days, but on the third morning, I discovered one had died in the night. The next day two were listless, not eating/drinking, only standing unsteadily. One kept falling over. It was eventually unable to get up again, and its head seemed extra floppy, as if it were paralyzed. It couldn’t do anything but peep. I of course separated out the sick chicks, put them indoors with heat lamp at 95 degrees, and began feeding with an eye dropper (medicated chick starter mash and sav-a-chick-treated water). They were not very interested in food but would swallow some. They drank on their own the first day if I dipped their beaks in water, but after a day were unable to keep their heads upright or swallow. The second chick died 24 hours later after being unable to move at all, and kept drooling out the water/food I tried to give it with an eye dropper. The third seemed to improve yesterday morning and stood on her own to eat for a few minutes. I had to help her drink. But she fell over after a while and couldn’t get up, couldn’t move, head floppy, can’t swallow, but can peep.

I can’t justify the cost of a vet for a chick 1-2 weeks old; is there anything else I can do? Can I force-feed by shoving the eye dropper down her throat? I’m afraid to do this for drowning her. I’ve been dribbling out slowly into an opened beak and seeing if she’ll swallow, which she won’t anymore.

I’d like to at least identify this disease so I can vaccinate/medicate the rest of the flock. No symptoms other than walking unsteadily/falling over/completely floppy head/body/legs. Stools are totally normal and no upper respiratory symptoms.

The new chicks were eating medicated feed at the feed store and at home for a couple of days at least before getting sick, so I’m thinking they got some protection against coccidosis at least.

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

Hmmm... I am not a vet but have you considered Marek's disease? Here is a link that might help: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/
Some hatcheries vaccinate against Merek's but not all do.

 

[rebrascora]

They are too young for Marek's. I believe the minimum incubation period is 3 weeks but they rarely exhibit symptoms less than 6 weeks old. Th youngest I have had is 8 weeks.
I would suspect that they either overheated or somehow became stressed or dehydrated whilst your eye was off the ball in those first couple of days or it is coccidiosis. Personally I would get some Corid and give the sick ones a direct dose of the concentrated liquid into their mouth and then medicate the water at the treatment strength of 2 teaspns of liquid per gallon of water or 1.5 teaspns of the powder for all of them for 7 days and then follow up with some vitamin B complex supplement.

 

[Eggcessive]

They may have been suffering from shipping stress or overcrowding when you first brought them home from the feedstore. Many times they get stressed in shipping from cold, and may suffer dehydration if they have been in transit for more than a day. Some that I have seen here may have pasty butt, or are so crowded in big bins that they cannot get to water or feed. When I get new baby chicks, I try to get them from a hatchery close to me. If I buy from a feed store, I like to pick out the more lively ones, or don’t buy if they look lethargic. Many times waterers become filled with pine shavings in the stores when I visit them.
The best thing you can do if you bring home new chicks is to get them drinking water. I either give them a few drops of Poultry NutriDrench or put SaveAChick in the water, and dip everyone’s beak a few times. Then I sprinkle feed on a clean paper towel around their feet, and show them. Check them and clean them if needed for pasty butt. Use a thermometer on the floor of their brooder under the heat lamp. Keep it between 90-95 degrees F the first week, and decrease 5 degrees weekly, but always make sure they have a cooler area to get to.
Sorry that you have lost some.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

Did you see them eat and drink when you first set them up?