I picked up two chicks Saturday 2/20 from a local hatchery (NPIP Cert & AI clean). I noticed right away that one chick did not drink water as it should and it peeped constantly. It also had poop stuck to it's backside so I washed it off carefully. The chick ate and seemed active though so I just hand watered her and let her be, hoping she'd get herself going soon. That following Wednesday she became very lethargic and I knew she wouldn't make it. It was quick. When I left in the morning she active. When I came home at lunch she was not moving. She died later that afternoon. (Wednesday) Since we had one remaining chick, we decided to go back to the hatchery to get a buddy so she would not be lonely and get depressed etc and start to decline herself. When my husband came home from picking her up, I noticed she too was exhibiting signs similar to the one we lost (he picked her up on Thursday). She had a pasty butt and peeped constantly. This chick drank a bit more water than the other so I didn't attempt to hand water her. She became very lethargic Sunday and died a few hours later. The first chick was about a week old when she died and the second chick was about 2 weeks old. The remaining chick that has survived the other two has appeared to remain healthy. Does anyone have any experience with an illness that exhibits symptoms like this and causes the chick to decline swiftly like this? I though coccidiosis but can't be sure. I did take the second chick's fecal sample to the vet to be tested but I'm not sure if it will provide any answers. These girls are Buff orpingtons and are usually pretty hardy. I learned from the hatchery that these buffs were shipped to him. I thought stress and cold may have taken them down but their age difference and the fact that their symptoms were the exact same seems odd. TIA
