They're 1 1/2 weeks old. A few days after hatch their breathing started sounding rough, little raspy and gurgly, sneezy. Now I have two that are sick, lethargic, not eating, drinking, etc. One of the two is worse off, found it under the ecoglow this morning, nearly dead. The other is more active but still not well. I've got 19 in total. Is that too many for an ecoglow? It's supposed to house 20. They do seem to hang out of it at night and our house isn't particularly warm, especially the room I keep them in, upper 50's-lower 60's at night. We get 2-3 pasty butts every day! Which is why I suspect a temperature issue but I guess it could be something else. They were on medicated starter for the first week and now they're just on plain starter. Didn't figure an issue there. They've been on TSC wood shavings but I took those out, fearing mold or something, I dunno, so they're on newspaper now until I get over to the feed store to get a new bale. Doesn't hurt to switch. I'm questioning everything, even our tap water. Filtered? Unfiltered? From the barn hydrant? I gave them sav-a-chick a couple of days ago to no effect, then a little vinegar and then a little yogurt and then garlic. But nothing seems to help and I worry that too much fiddling with their diet only makes things worse, throws things off. I ordered a second ecoglow today, just in case (and well, I have another hatch due in a few weeks so I'll need it anyway). The sick ones are separated in an old aquarium with a hot water bottle to snuggle against, under a towel. I'm trying to get fluids in them. One has a mushy crop though, maybe sour crop.
I've never had an issue like this in chicks so young, in my own hatches. Any advice or thoughts would be welcome.
I've never had an issue like this in chicks so young, in my own hatches. Any advice or thoughts would be welcome.
