Something is killing my chickens......

[moonladyisis]

This is going to be a long post with history so bear with me. (Also, please ignore typos. I am on my phone.) Randomly, my chickens get sick a drop dead. They start kind of off, not eating much, eventually getting weaker and weaker and eventually dying. They do develop diarrhea,but no blood. I took one chicken to get a necropsy and the only thing that came up is E. coli. It had taken over her intestines and liver. Fast forward to a few weeks later, another chicken falls ill. I bring her to the vet who tells me the dosage to use for SMZs and meloxicam (pain and fever reducer. Her temp was 108). Antibiotics did nothing, but they pain killer/fever reducer did seem to perk her up. I ordered baytril, but it got here too late for her. I have since treated the flock with Corrid (outbreak dosage) and have them on the preventative dose. Today I noticed more diarrhea from a hen. (Lots of white/water not much solids) We have had a TON of rain and there is standing water everywhere. Any ideas as to what could be causing this? Or what my next step should be toward saving my flock? Thanks in advance and I’m sorry for the novel.

 

[Cyprus]

Treating them with corrid is a good idea.

The fact that you've had lots of rain recently brings to mind the idea of worms. Your currently runny hen sounds exactly like my birds when they had a huge worm load.

When the load gets too big, the parasites take ALL of the nutrition the hen is ingesting, and she basically starves to death. This might be what you have.

As a treatment and a preventative, I would recommend using a Strike III medicated feed for a week to deworm them. Depending on the kind you get, you may or may not be able to eat the eggs during treatment and for a few days after.

I would also recommend making sure your coop is clean right now in this wet weather, and that your hens aren't walking on anything that might cause cuts in their feet. You don't want your birds getting bumblefoot. They have enough to deal with already.

 

[moonladyisis]

Ironically, the fecal samples came back negative, but I’m running them again.

 

[Jrose]

If the testing has all been negative but there’s been liver infection, my first inclination is contaminated feed or some other ingestion toxin. E. coli can flare up in the body with extreme stress. If it’s not viral or parasitic, if no infectious bacteria can be blamed, maybe they’re getting into something.

Have you checked them for lice as well? It’s a long shot but skin parasites can kill a bit if they get bad enough. I suspect you would have noticed already though.

It’s worth saying that E. coli can also be an issue with excessive fecal consumption. If they’re pooping in feed or confined to a poopy area where grit and greens are poopy that might be a factor.


Are there any other symptoms other than condition decline, loose stools, and death?

 

[Jrose]

You mention that she’s pooping watery without much solids. That’s not diarrhea, that’s basically urine. I think. Lol. But if there’s no feces being passed she’s probably not eating much, which is a bad sign. From my experience chicken diarrhea is sloppy milky mixed sludge patties, stinky and gross.

 

[moonladyisis]

If the testing has all been negative but there’s been liver infection, my first inclination is contaminated feed or some other ingestion toxin. E. coli can flare up in the body with extreme stress. If it’s not viral or parasitic, if no infectious bacteria can be blamed, maybe they’re getting into something.

Have you checked them for lice as well? It’s a long shot but skin parasites can kill a bit if they get bad enough. I suspect you would have noticed already though.

It’s worth saying that E. coli can also be an issue with excessive fecal consumption. If they’re pooping in feed or confined to a poopy area where grit and greens are poopy that might be a factor.


Are there any other symptoms other than condition decline, loose stools, and death?

We have some suspicions that the neighbors (who’s dog was eating out chickens) has been throwing tainted feed over the fence to the chickens. They free range during the day, have a large run with toys. No other symptoms except the lethargy, anorexia, and watery stool. At the end stages they sometimes get respitory stuff going on. Nothing comes up on necropsy except the E. Coli. All their feed is kept in aluminum cans and their feeders are hanging. It is only ONE of the coops that free rangers. (The group that is not near our security cameras.) The other coop hasn’t had any problems, and they don’t eat along the property line. Earlier today, in the Ducks filter, we found feed with purple stuff mixed in. We have not used that filter in months and no feed should have been located after the filtration process.

 

[GldnValleyHens]

Why would they want to poison your flock? Feud, or just plain evil? That is horrible if they are truly doing that. I am so glad we have good neighbors.

 

[Jrose]

We have some suspicions that the neighbors (who’s dog was eating out chickens) has been throwing tainted feed over the fence to the chickens. They free range during the day, have a large run with toys. No other symptoms except the lethargy, anorexia, and watery stool. At the end stages they sometimes get respitory stuff going on. Nothing comes up on necropsy except the E. Coli. All their feed is kept in aluminum cans and their feeders are hanging. It is only ONE of the coops that free rangers. (The group that is not near our security cameras.) The other coop hasn’t had any problems, and they don’t eat along the property line. Earlier today, in the Ducks filter, we found feed with purple stuff mixed in. We have not used that filter in months and no feed should have been located after the filtration process.

Sounds like your first suspect then. The symptoms don’t add up, if it were a deadly virus they wouldn’t be dropping off one at a time slowly. A poisoning would tax and infect the liver, probably allowing an E. coli flare up. The poison would probably burn up the mucus lining in the digestive track making eating painful. Between infection and starvation they would wither away. Poison doesn’t have to mean they drop dead instantly with a frothing mouth. Small constant doses can build up, or an acute ingestion can tax the system so hard that the bird jut can’t keep fighting it. You’re sure there are no known toxic plants in their vicinity? Most animals would be smart enough to avoid the rare noxious weed, but you never know!

 

[Jrose]

Some people lose birds to fertilizer. The birds peck up the pellets and over time it builds up and eventually kills them. That’s a thought too. Or any kind of pesticides or herbicides being used could be suspect.

 

[chicken danz]

E coli is a bacteria. The fact that you have standing water can also contribute greatly to E coli outbreaks. Every symptom you have mentioned points directly to E coli. First and most important is to clean their coop and the surroundings as good as you can. You need to use a good disinfectent and if it can be mixed with bleach mix in bleach with the disinfectand and thoroughly spray down the area. Make sure to replace all bedding as well. Giving them Corrid at this point isn't going to help. You need to be treating them with with chlortetracycline . One name for this drug is Aureomycin. Also be sure to give the chickens lots of probiotics. This is extremely important any time you are treating them with any antibiotics or even corid. The probiotics will also help them resist the E coli.
You should do every thing you can to get the area where they are dried up. There are a few products on the market, like stall dry that will help absorb some moisture. Then be sure to clean and disinfect their waterers and add some chlorine and some titratbable iodine to the water.
You can vaccinate against E coli but if your chickens are already weakened by it it probably won't be effective.