Sick 2 day old peachick.....At a loss what to do.

[Yoda]

Thanks for all the info everyone. This was only our second year hatching. We did three hatches last year 1 pea, 1 goose, 1 turkey, 1 duck. All survived until let to free range. Of the 12 peas in the hatch last year 9 are alive and well. We sold all the geese, ducks and turkey. We have hatched 3 batches this year. 2 peas and one turkey. One turkey batch is stil in incubator. So I'm new to hatching but tring my best. I will take everyone's advice into account when my turkey start to hatch.

One a sad note we are looseing adult peas. I have had 2 die unexpectedly. We have had them 3months. Bought them from a great breeder and were doing well. We wormed them when we got them. With puncture and ivermectin. It was brought to my attention to treat maybe for blackhead. So I guess if they are still alive in 18-30 days we will treat for blackhead. So far all mine I raised here are showing no signs of illness, but the ones that died really didn't either.

I would worm them first because I doubt it is blackhead disease. It is very rare for an adult to get it. Chicks and young adults yes but not mature ones. How old are these"adults" ? After the last wormer treatment you can do the blackhead, you just do not want to mix them both at the same time. Are these adult birds free ranging? There is always a sign but sometimes we just do not see it in time.

I also wanted to post that I have an incubator full of eggs that all went in the same day, so this batch of eggs should all hatch out the same day? Well I candled every egg in the incubator and I have some eggs that I can see a heart beating (like on the 7th day) and others that have a little more progress and I have about half of them with baby chicks moving around so I doubt that just because the eggs went in the same time all will hatch the same time. I use a candler to check the eggs. Sometimes I will see movement sometimes I do not. But the eggs that are only showing a heart beating will end up in the incubator more then 30 days.

 

[casportpony]

I would worm them first because I doubt it is blackhead disease. It is very rare for an adult to get it. Chicks and young adults yes but not mature ones. How old are these"adults" ? After the last wormer treatment you can do the blackhead, you just do not want to mix them both at the same time. Are these adult birds free ranging? There is always a sign but sometimes we just do not see it in time.

Why not?

-Kathy

 

[Yoda]

Why not?

-Kathy

because you are mixing drugs and do not know what the outcome will be plus the birds are already weak. Never mix drugs

 

[Yoda]

If I had a sick young bird and was not sure if it was either blackhead or worms I would treat for the blackhead first cause it is the quickest and deadliest of the two then treat for the worms.

 

[Peacrazy]

The peahen were 3years old. They were doing great and laying wonderful eggs that all hatched in the incubator. I will contact a vet tomorrow about blackhead and pancure. I'm not sure how soon after wormer you can medicate for something else. She is eating and drinking water. They are not free range as we are still in the quarantine stage. I bought them in April.

 

[casportpony]

because you are mixing drugs and do not know what the outcome will be plus the birds are already weak. Never mix drugs

If I had a sick young bird and was not sure if it was either blackhead or worms I would treat for the blackhead first cause it is the quickest and deadliest of the two then treat for the worms.

According to my vets, metronidazole and fenbendazole, when used at the recommended dose, can be used at the same time, and it's what I've done with my histomoniasis (blackhead) outbreaks. Furthermore, if you look up each drug in a Veterinary drug handbook, like Plumb's, you'll see that neither drug is listed under the drug interaction section.

You aren't the first to say that they shouldn't be used at the same time, so that's why I asked.

FWIW, on one occasion I was also told to use Baytril as well, which I would *not* recommend due to how powerful it is and the problems that can arise from using it.

I do agree with you that histomoniasis (blackhead) is not as common in mature birds, so I would want to see some sign of it *before* I treated with metronidazole, otherwise I would probably just worm the bird(s) with fenbendazole at a dose effective against cecal, round and capillary worms.

-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

The peahen were 3years old. They were doing great and laying wonderful eggs that all hatched in the incubator. I will contact a vet tomorrow about blackhead and pancure. I'm not sure how soon after wormer you can medicate for something else. She is eating and drinking water. They are not free range as we are still in the quarantine stage. I bought them in April.

All of my histomoniasis (blackhead) outbreaks have been on birds less than a 10 months old, but older birds can get it. Talking with your vet is the right thing to do, they can help you set up an effective worming program and hook you up with metronidazole if needed.

And as I said in my previous post, as far as I know, fenbendazole and metronidazole can be used together... Have many living here that did not suffer from it.

-Kathy

 

[Yoda]

The peahen were 3years old. They were doing great and laying wonderful eggs that all hatched in the incubator. I will contact a vet tomorrow about blackhead and pancure. I'm not sure how soon after wormer you can medicate for something else. She is eating and drinking water. They are not free range as we are still in the quarantine stage. I bought them in April.

Can you catch them in the pen they are in? If not then put some leather gloves on at night and see if you can grab one. Listen to it's breathing, using a flashlight look at it's face and see if the nose is running and if the eyes look clear. Is the bird thin? Any and all of these questions that get a yes to means the bird is sick. If you watch the birds and see how they act, you will get to know each one and when there is an issue you will notice it. Just like my fishtank, if the fish is facing the back of the tank constantlyu it is sick. A healthy 3 year old doesn't just die unless it is from the heat or lightening (like mine did). If the nose is running or you hear it breathing/rattle then it has a cold. Do you know what the birds looked like before they died, can you decribe it? For example the wings drooping tail held high, etc?

 

[areeb]

if he still has problems, you should post a pic of the peachick so we can see the swelling problem it has been more than three days now so if he isn't eating try pushing the tube all the way to the right because the middle is the airway.

 

[Peacrazy]

Areeb- the peachick died.

As for respiratory problem....I have given it a thought. We have other animals and I'm familliar with lots of respritory issues. I truly believe this is not the issue we are dealing with. As for blackhead...the other hen that died I posted her and her liver was normal. With blackhead her liver should have had spots on it. Also she has loose poo but it is dark green. If I can use pancure and Mertonidazole together that might be a good option. We do watch our peas carefully and I am familiar with their traits, habits and eating habits. All peas in that pen were acting normal. No loose poo, no heavy breathing, no nasal discharge...the only change was the looser bowel. The last pea I posted had a full belly....fresh grass, chops, game bird, cat food.