Turkey Chick Sick

[AnnaCastle]

I have a sick turkey chick, Broad-breast kind raised for eating. They are probably less than 2 wks old, 4 of them living in a feed bin.

We clean and sterilize and put new bedding every time we change birds in the bin. These guys get generic "game bird / "Meatbird" food, and we give all our birds water w/ apple cider vinegar and occasional doses of food-grade diametatious earth to kill any parasites they may get, so they are generally healthy.

One turkey chick is sitting by himself, droopy state, lethargic, not really eating or drinking, just sits with his eyes closed and squeaks. Already separated and given his own food/water, dusted w/ diametitious earth, and a red heat lamp to keep him warm. We're in southern California if that helps for area info. They are not in direct contact w/ any other birds, although we do also have quail and chickens in the same area but separate pens/housing (same air), and we handle all of them. Any ideas what he could have? Contagious? Treatment? Antibiotic? Could I give him fish antibiotic?

Already sterilized the bin, replaced all the bedding, food, water in the bin so the others have fresh stuff.

Thanks.

 

[casportpony]

I have a sick turkey chick, Broad-breast kind raised for eating. They are probably less than 2 wks old, 4 of them living in a feed bin.

We clean and sterilize and put new bedding every time we change birds in the bin.  These guys get generic "game bird / "Meatbird" food, and we give all our birds water w/ apple cider vinegar and occasional doses of food-grade diametatious earth to kill any parasites they may get, so they are generally healthy.

One turkey chick is sitting by himself, droopy state, lethargic, not really eating or drinking, just sits with his eyes closed and squeaks. Already separated and given his own food/water, dusted w/ diametitious earth, and a red heat lamp to keep him warm.  We're in southern California if that helps for area info.  They are not in direct contact w/ any other birds, although we do also have quail and chickens in the same area but separate pens/housing (same air), and we handle all of them.  Any ideas what he could have? Contagious? Treatment?  Antibiotic?  Could I give him fish antibiotic?

Already sterilized the bin, replaced all the bedding, food, water in the bin so the others have fresh stuff.

Thanks.

Can you post a picture of it's poop?

 

[AnnaCastle]

He had not eaten or pooped all day since we separated him. He had gotten progressively, rapidly worse from after 8pm til 9:30, then just went to sleep, only moving if he started to fall over. All checked on him all night, dipping his beak in water (he had stopped drinking my himself). He passed that night at 4:32 am in my hands. At that time I had noticed some wetness in my hand when I was giving him water, and saw a thin string of poop dangling from his butt like a wet ribbon, so I got a wet paper towel to clean if off.

You know that magician trick where he pulls a scarf from his sleeve, and it just keeps coming out? I was horrified, and the poor thing squeaked and cried and I felt terrible. Finally it came all the way out, looked like a long piece of grass or something, with some feathers or other fibrous stuff, all covered and bound in poop, but no blood. Then he just sort of... gasped and went limp.

Maybe all that time it had simply been an intestinal blockage, not a disease. Still, if that's all it was, wouldn't he have been OK after it came out? I was afraid I might have torn (or even ripped) out his guts or something and then he bled out inside, so looked at the poopy thing again, but didn't see any blood, but it was night so I didn't have full room lights on. There was a small puddle on the floor of very runny poop, dark, so it's possible it could have had blood mixed in... I imagine a small chick wouldn't have much blood to spill though.

That was 3 days ago now. The other 3 turkey chicks (and all other birds) are fine.