Sick Dying Lathorgic Chicks!

[Johnies Girls]

My Ameracauna chicks are 2 weeks old and now I have had 2 of 11 die. They get lathorgic, head down and then neck stretched while acting as if gasping or gaging on something. They still eat, drink and poop. The poop looks and smells normal. It seems to be spreading. I seperate them as I see the signs, but it seems that it hasn't helped.Any suggestions?

 

[donrae]

My first thought with dying chicks is always overheating. How large is your brooder? How is the light situated? Is there a "cool" area of ambient temp for them to get completely out from under the heat?

At this age, if they were raised by a momma hen, they would be spending the majority of their day out from under her, at whatever temp it happened to be outside--even quite cold! When we keep them in a brooder we tend to overheat them.

 

[Johnies Girls]

The brooder I start with for the 1st week is a 3'X3'X18" wood box w/a screen top. One corner has the light and thermometer. Food & water is in the opposite corner also w/a thermometer. Temps ran 90 degrees F under lite & around 80 by the food. After the 1st week they are moved to a larger, mostly enclosed cage and the food is at whatever temp it is outside and there is a lited 3 sided enclosed area that is thermostatically kept at 85 w/multiple lights for the next week, dropping 5 degrees weekly until it holds at 75 degrees for the 4th, 5th & 6th week. Of course this happened at week 2-3. Just as w/momma, they spend some time under the lites and some away. They don't seem to have running noses or sneezing. I have used electrolytes, sugar, PetRx as directed, biotics as directed, yogurt, goat milk, etc..., all basic home remedies. I'm slow this morning & haven't even been out to check on them. Just baffled. I've apparently always been lucky as I have bought or hatched chicks most of my 57 years and just never lost more than one out of a dozen over the thousands that I have had. normally no losses at all. Except for the time I was 5 and got 6 colored chicks. one shouldn't try to teach chicks to fly when their back yard has a chain link fence with barbs up. Traumatic for a 5 year old. But I had a good momma, she took me back to the feed store for more colored chick replacements along with a lecture on chickens don't fly. Still need answers about sick birds though. I'll post at lunch what I see today.

 

[Johnies Girls]

The brooder I start with for the 1st week is a 3'X3'X18" wood box w/a screen top. One corner has the light and thermometer. Food & water is in the opposite corner also w/a thermometer. Temps ran 90 degrees F under lite & around 80 by the food. After the 1st week they are moved to a larger, mostly enclosed cage and the food is at whatever temp it is outside and there is a lited 3 sided enclosed area that is thermostatically kept at 85 w/multiple lights for the next week, dropping 5 degrees weekly until it holds at 75 degrees for the 4th, 5th & 6th week. Of course this happened at week 2-3. Just as w/momma, they spend some time under the lites and some away. They don't seem to have running noses or sneezing. I have used electrolytes, sugar, PetRx as directed, biotics as directed, yogurt, goat milk, etc..., all basic home remedies. I'm slow this morning & haven't even been out to check on them. Just baffled. I've apparently always been lucky as I have bought or hatched chicks most of my 57 years and just never lost more than one out of a dozen over the thousands that I have had. normally no losses at all. Except for the time I was 5 and got 6 colored chicks. one shouldn't try to teach chicks to fly when their back yard has a chain link fence with barbs up. Traumatic for a 5 year old. But I had a good momma, she took me back to the feed store for more colored chick replacements along with a lecture on chickens don't fly. Still need answers about sick birds though. I'll post at lunch what I see today.

PS: I am isolating the sick birds as I see that they are doing the same. I had 3 as of 10PM last nite in a separate homemade brooder w/similar characteristics.