Strange Parasites on young chicks

[aaronhealy74]

So I have to problems to ask about, one of my chickens hatched 5 baby chicks last week and over the last three days they've been dying one by one. This morning there were two left that looked healthy to me but this afternoon I found them both dead in the chicken coop. On closer inspection I saw what looked like hundreds of tiny grains of rice in their feathers. Ive been searching through lists of chicken parasites and I just can't seem to indentify them!
I don't have a photo because i got rid of them before i thought to take a picture but I'm concerned about the other chickens sitting on eggs.
Does anyone here know what they might be?

I've also got turkeys sitting on a pile of eggs which are due to hatch any day now. I've got one tom, which for the last week has been sitting next to the broody hens (which I thought seemed a little strange) and three hens. I moved their bucket-shelter to see how the hens were doing and the tom walked away, revealing one warm egg and a half eaten baby turkey! I went inside to get a bucket and when i came back the tom was eating it again.
I now have the tom seperated from the hens.
Is it possible that the tom stole an egg and broke it open to eat the poult inside? Or could it have been an accident? I have a large enclosure for the turkeys which can be split in two and a chicken coop for the chickens which walk free during the day.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Eggcessive]

You should look at all of your birds for mites and lice. Mites can kill, while lice are more of a nuisance. They may be found under the vent and elsewhere on chickens.

Permethrin 10 concentrate is very reasonable, effective to treat, and can make many gallons of spray when mixed with water, to use with a hand sprayer for chickens or a garden sprayer for the coop. Instructions are inside the packaging, and you can find it at TSC and other farm stores. Permethrin dust might be better for chicks and during cold weather, but the spray is needed for coop, roost, and nest box treatment. The bedding will need to be removed, and birds treated at 7 day intervals for mites at least twice. Treat for lice every 10 days to get lice and the newly hatched ones.

Here is a good article on what lice and mites look like:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

 

[casportpony]

Could they have been maggots?

 

[Eggcessive]

Here is more info with more pictures:
https://www.hobbyfarms.com/7-facts-need-know-poultry-lice/
https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8162.pdf

 

[casportpony]

I mention maggots because I just discovered a duck nest with one dead duckling and hundreds of maggots below it.

 

[Keziah]

ioh no! poor babies! i hope everything gets better... good luck!

 

[Eggcessive]

Casportpony has a good thought about there being maggots, since a broken egg will attract flies. Maggots will get on the chickens, and eat right through tissue. Many people see this with fly strike, a condition where a poopy but or a cut will become infested with maggot larvae. It wouldn’t take much to kill a chick. Use the links above, and look for maggots as well to find out what you are dealing with. Permethrin will also work against maggots and flies, but they need to be removed.

 

[lazy gardener]

Agreed with @casportpony , they may have been fly eggs, or maggots. You need to identify the parasite, then figure out what you need to do to correct the problem. Poultry will consume an egg which has quit, but it's not unheard of for them to cannibalize an egg or chick also. I'm thinking what you saw was fly eggs or maggots. Either way, they will consume the chick alive.

 

[Kiki]

Welcome to BYC.
Can you get a picture of these tiny things?
My first guess would be lice.
Permethrin would be a great thing to have on hand right about now.
I'd treat all remaining birds and coop asap.

Martin's PERMETHRIN spray

• Kiki
• Mar 22, 2018
• 6
• flies lice mites permethrin

Martin's Horse & Stable Permethrin Spray

• Kiki
• Mar 22, 2018
• flies lice mites permethrin

Permethrin

 

[Ursuline Chick]

We also use Permethrin, as well, and have had really good luck with it. With quick proper treatment, we have never lost a chicken to mites or lice, not even chicks or pullets. Good luck, sorry about your loss.