Silkies dying suddenly! Help!!

[Silkie Amateur]

I got 7 silkies (4 white and 2 buff) from tractor supply in the bantam assortment and they are about 5 or 6 weeks old now. They have their own coop and large run with grass and muscadine vines. About 2 weeks ago one of the white silkies was dead under the coop and was kind of flat on the ground (they would sleep here at the time) . Today there was another silkie dead that was also kind of flat on the ground in the corner of the run where they sleep. They do pile up with each other when they sleep but the one today was dead kind of 2 feet away from where they sleep so I don’t know if they are smooshing each other when they sleep or something. They haven’t been vaccinated but I really want to know what’s happening to my silkies! Thanks!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Check for pasty butt. Silkies are notorious for getting it and it's deadly fast. Chickens tend to flatten when they're dead, so they may not have been crushed

 

[Silkie Amateur]

Check for pasty butt. Silkies are notorious for getting it and it's deadly fast. Chickens tend to flatten when they're dead, so they may not have been crushed

Okay, when you say silkies are notorious for it, what are you talking about?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Every silkie I have ever had had pasty butt at least once as a chick, even when every other breed never got it in the brooder

 

[DanielE1990]

Have you checked for mites also.

 

[Silkie Amateur]

No they don’t have a pasty butt and they aren’t chicks or anything. How do you check for mites? I don’t think that’s it but I’ll check.

 

[DanielE1990]

No they don’t have a pasty butt and they aren’t chicks or anything. How do you check for mites? I don’t think that’s it but I’ll check.

Check under the feathers next to the skin also look anywhere they sleep. Will be thousands of tinny moving dots.
If that is it diatomaceous earth works wonders for them.

 

[Eggcessive]

Coccidiosis could be a problem. What are the poops like, and are any acting lethargic or puffed up? Corid treats coccidiosis. If you lose another, keep the body cold in a cooler, and send it to your state poultry vet for a necropsy. Call ahead to get details.

 

[Silkie Amateur]

There were no mites and they all seem fine. There poop is all good from what I could tell. One had a little scab under its wing with some green coloring around it but it doesn’t look like anything major.

 

[Silkie Amateur]

Check under the feathers next to the skin also look anywhere they sleep. Will be thousands of tinny moving dots.
If that is it diatomaceous

Coccidiosis could be a problem. What are the poops like, and are any acting lethargic or puffed up? Corid treats coccidiosis. If you lose another, keep the body cold in a cooler, and send it to your state poultry vet for a necropsy. Call ahead to get details.

all the poop is good