Urgent Reminder-PLEASE Quarantine Newly Acquired Birds!

[Suzierd]

Really hope you dodged a bullet this time, I would avoid auctions or swaps in the future. Best of luck.

 

[dutchbunny83]

Thanks,
I wish I knew this ahead of time!
If some of my originals get sick I still won't cull them, they are my pets.
But definitely won't be adding any more chickens and chicks until I know what's going on.
I just got back from Lowe's (in the pouring down rain) and $100 later I have the rest of the supplies I need to make a separate pen.
But in this weather all of the chickens new and old are huddled together on my patio. (With 2 coops they still insist on pooing all over my porch as it's their favorite hang out. Guess they get to be "outside", but covered from the rain.
Is it even worth my time trying to build a pen out in this storm when they've had 24 hours together?

 

[Suzierd]

Honestly I doubt its worth it. Most illnesses will show themselves within two weeks.

 

[AVintageLife]

Love this thread, it is one of the best I've seen on BYC. We have four silkie chicks in quarantine on our farmers porch. Friday they will be seven weeks old and have been in quarantine for five weeks. They still have a heat lamp for the cool nights. My goal was to have them in quarantine for six weeks total. Then they would be eight weeks old, no longer need the heat lamp and I would move their crate into the coop to begin the integration process (which won't happen completely until they've grown a bit more, maybe August). They are healthy, lively chicks working through a 25 pound bag of medicated chick starter/grower and when that's gone they'll be on fermented feed (made with non-med chick starter/grower, BOSS, grains, ACV). Moving them into the coop will be the scariest part for me but I've been practicing good bio-security and I think my plan is sound. I've even given them plods of grass/dirt from areas where my flock forages to maybe "expose" them to the existing flock germs. One of my EE's hatched six chicks (from purchased fertile olive egger eggs) two weeks ago and it's amazing how much easier it is to let a broody handle the chick rearing & no bio-security issues. I think these silkies are the last I'll bring in from outside sources and hope for a broody every summer to add to the folk when I need to.

 

[brackenfalls]

Is the damage already done?

We have a small backyard flock of 6 adults and 2 six-week-old pullets (separated). We had 4 chicks, but 2 died (unexpected at 4 wks, not sure of reasons). We wanted to replace the two lost ones, found someone in town with similar aged pullets, and brought home two. We immediately placed the new little ones with the original little ones.

I wouldn't say the new little ones were in pristine conditions... and showed symptoms of stress. But, they settled in just fine with the other two.

I wish I had read this before I joined the four together. After contact, is the "contamination" already done? How long after integration can quarantine still be beneficial?

Sigh...

 

[dawg53]

Is the damage already done?

We have a small backyard flock of 6 adults and 2 six-week-old pullets (separated). We had 4 chicks, but 2 died (unexpected at 4 wks, not sure of reasons). We wanted to replace the two lost ones, found someone in town with similar aged pullets, and brought home two. We immediately placed the new little ones with the original little ones.

I wouldn't say the new little ones were in pristine conditions... and showed symptoms of stress. But, they settled in just fine with the other two.

I wish I had read this before I joined the four together. After contact, is the "contamination" already done? How long after integration can quarantine still be beneficial?

Sigh...

Signs of stress can simply be the moving the new birds to their new surroundings and introducing them to your other birds. This is typically what happens when new birds are introduced to a new flock. The only thing you can do is observe your birds for respiratory symptoms, odd behavior. anything out of the ordinary. Next time quarantine new birds for 6 weeks as far away from your existing flock as possible and closely inspect them while quarantined. Practice biosecurity.

 

[Tuhmu]

I may be getting a batch of week old chicks (blacked out for awhile and bid on an auction, against my better judgement) and was wondering, since they wont be coming from a hatchery, how long I should keep them separate from my 4 little two week old chicks I hatched? Wait a full month will a couple weeks be ok?

 

[TG10]

We are first-year chicken owners and have an assorted flock of various ages. Up to this point, our flock has been really healthy and beautiful.
We recently bought 3 young pullets from a breeder and have had them in quarantine for 3 weeks. We hope to put them in with the rest of our flock after the 4th week.
With the help of a YouTube video we tried to check the new pullets for lice and mites. On this thread we saw that we should be also checking for runny eyes and noses, and scaly legs. Is there anything else that we're supposed to be looking for? Is there a website somewhere that shows us picture examples of what we are supposed to be looking for?

 

[casportpony]

We are first-year chicken owners and have an assorted flock of various ages. Up to this point, our flock has been really healthy and beautiful.
We recently bought 3 young pullets from a breeder and have had them in quarantine for 3 weeks. We hope to put them in with the rest of our flock after the 4th week.
With the help of a YouTube video we tried to check the new pullets for lice and mites. On this thread we saw that we should be also checking for runny eyes and noses, and scaly legs. Is there anything else that we're supposed to be looking for? Is there a website somewhere that shows us picture examples of what we are supposed to be looking for?

Welcome to BYC! If you want pictures of things to look for like bubbles in eyes, lice, mites, etc, doing a google search is probably the easiest. You should probably introduce yourself here:

• https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/44/new-member-introductions

or

• https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/26/where-am-i-where-are-you

Then spend lots of time reading old threads.

-Kathy

 

[pathwandering]

So I am quarantining two 8 week old chicks I got today. I examined them for a good amount of time and couldn't see any lice or mites - vents, eyes, noses, legs all look good BUT they were in a large free range flock and were at the bottom of the pecking order and that shows a little. Not a lot, but they aren't in the pristine condition that my other birds were when I got them. Some pecked tail feathers and smaller than what I think they should probably be at this age. (They were just so friendly to my daughter...and I think they will eventually be very pretty birds)
They are being quarantined in an area my chickens never go, I'm terrible at distances but I would guess 30-40 feet from their coop? I could move them further but that would put them into the deep woods where they would be more likely to be attacked and I can't keep as good an eye on them.

Beyond keeping them quarantined and practicing biosecurity, I'm wondering what I should do proactively for their health - should I give them a DE bath? front-line? de-worm them? I don't want to stress them out but it seems like some of these things would be wise. I'm just not sure how to do it for this age.