Slightly lethargic silkie chicken...after 3 deaths from the coop...

[Aunt Angus]

Thank you so much again. She’s alive today just not very energetic. She’s finally drinking some. I have her own set of food and water in a separate coop by herself with a fan on her for now.. it’s so hot here in Houston anyone know of a good lab in Texas I should send her fecal matter to?

Most vets will do it, even if it's a dog/cat vet. Fecal float tests are pretty standard. You might just call one and ask. If they don't, they might know of a place.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I gave her plenty of vitamins a.k.a. poultry cell vitamin B 12+ supplements and Nutri drench with water.

it is extremely hot outside and I do keep a circulating fan on them during the day. I lost three of them today and one more a few days ago to what I thought may be due to the heat

Crop is normal and eyes and nostrils are clear so far she’s just rather slow all around, eating but BARELY, not moving around much.

I treated her with .25cc of Valbazen tonight. I will treat the rest in the coop as well. Also thinking of putting Corid (amprolium) 9.6% in the water for all a 5-day treatment

@Kiki do you have info for Vets or Labs in Houston?

Do your birds have shade?

You mention her crop is "normal", when are you checking her crop - is it emptying overnight?

The poop looks muddy looking. Are you spraying down or adding water to your run to try to keep the birds cool?

If you are going to treat with Corid, then stop all vitamins/supplements until you finish the course of Corid treatment.
Liquid Corid (9.6%) dose is 2 teaspoons per gallon of water given as the only source of drinking water. If you feel that Coccidiosis is the issue of the ones you lost as well, then treat all your chicks.

For this one, if you feel that Coccidiosis is the problem, then direct oral drench her with undiluted Liquid Corid at a rate of 0.10ml per pound of weight once a day for 3 days.
This is in addition to you syringing or her drinking as much of the mixed Corid water that she should consume (normally drink) in a day.
You want her hydrated.

Since you have lost 3 already, it would be a very good idea to have a necropsy performed if you lose this little one too. This way you will know more about the cause and what steps/treatments you may need to take.

 

[Kiki]

Can someone help? I’m not sure what is going on I do have a lot of silkies right now in one coop as I’m building my fourth largest coop that is almost finished however they still have plenty of room to free range. However, it is extremely hot outside and I do keep a circulating fan on them during the day. I lost three of them today and one more a few days ago to what I thought may be due to the heat but now I’m just not quite sure….

one is now acting slightly lethargic it was totally fine earlier today as I cleaned out that coop.

I gave her plenty of vitamins a.k.a. poultry cell vitamin B 12+ supplements and Nutri drench with water. Thinking of scrambling an egg to see if she eats. I’m afraid to treat her with any antibiotics or anything else I have, ( which is pretty much everything in my emergency chicken vet kit ...I've pretty much got the gamut)... Any suggestions out there? I really don’t wanna lose this one it’s my last and final buff Silkie that is a part of my breeding stock .

I'm reading/catching up now.

1st. Stop offering vitamins and extras.
Second... Make sure you are not giving them cold water. Cool is ok but not cold.



Be right back... After I read all of your posts.

 

[Kiki]

Most vets will do it, even if it's a dog/cat vet. Fecal float tests are pretty standard. You might just call one and ask. If they don't, they might know of a place.

No not here in Houston. Most vets will NOT test poop here.

 

[Kiki]

Our state lab will test poop and perform a necropsy.
https://tvmdl.tamu.edu/tests/necropsy-poultry/

 

[Aunt Angus]

Thanks, @Kiki!

 

[The_Silkie_Farm]

@Kiki do you have info for Vets or Labs in Houston?

Do your birds have shade?

You mention her crop is "normal", when are you checking her crop - is it emptying overnight?

The poop looks muddy looking. Are you spraying down or adding water to your run to try to keep the birds cool?

If you are going to treat with Corid, then stop all vitamins/supplements until you finish the course of Corid treatment.
Liquid Corid (9.6%) dose is 2 teaspoons per gallon of water given as the only source of drinking water. If you feel that Coccidiosis is the issue of the ones you lost as well, then treat all your chicks.

For this one, if you feel that Coccidiosis is the problem, then direct oral drench her with undiluted Liquid Corid at a rate of 0.10ml per pound of weight once a day for 3 days.
This is in addition to you syringing or her drinking as much of the mixed Corid water that she should consume (normally drink) in a day.
You want her hydrated.

Since you have lost 3 already, it would be a very good idea to have a necropsy performed if you lose this little one too. This way you will know more about the cause and what steps/treatments you may need to take.

To be honest I’m not sure how to check if the crop is emptying or not… I Don't have a vet or lab that I know of that I can send the fecal specimen. Don't I need to send it off to a poultry lab? Thank you for all the info. So I thought the Corid drench was .1ml , it's .10ml? Like 1 teaspoon?

 

[The_Silkie_Farm]

No not here in Houston. Most vets will NOT test poop here.

Yes I'm in Houston as well that's what I thought too I didn't think they would do a fecal test on poultry

 

[The_Silkie_Farm]

Our state lab will test poop and perform a necropsy.
https://tvmdl.tamu.edu/tests/necropsy-poultry/

Thank you!!!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

To be honest I’m not sure how to check if the crop is emptying or not… I Don't have a vet or lab that I know of that I can send the fecal specimen. Don't I need to send it off to a poultry lab? Thank you for all the info. So I thought the Corid drench was .1ml , it's .10ml? Like 1 teaspoon?

.1ml and .10ml is the same thing.

Crop is at the right of the breast. You should be able to feel a bulge when the chick has been eating/drinking. The crop should feel fullish at the end of the day when the bird goes to sleep and should feel empty first thing in the morning before they eat/drink. If the crop still has a bulge in the morning, then there's a problem.

You're an NPIP chicken breeder?
https://www.thesilkiechickens.com/shop