Urgent Reminder-PLEASE Quarantine Newly Acquired Birds!

[tunaoftheland]

A friend of mine has four cochin chicks she got from a hatchery to raise in her kindergarten class. Now that school's out she wants to give them to me. They'll be four weeks old but they've never been outside. Does this count as older birds, or hatchery chicks? I obvioulsly won't put them with my girls till they're bigger (mine are ten weeks old) but I had been planning on letting them see each other through wire.

 

[cheeptrick]

Quote:
You will still need to quarantine them for the 30 days...
Do you have a smaller coop you can put them in? After the 30 days you can put them together in the same coop...still separated and integrate them slowly into your new flock...but if they are young chicks...you have to wait anyhow till they are as big as the adults...so they are big enough to protect themselves when the pecking order is being established. My polish babes about 6 weeks old when I put them in a pet carrier cage...I actually put them in there for almost 30 days additionally after being in the brooder for about 6 weeks. They could see each other...and I would let them out from time to time while I was IN the coop with them watching. Now they are roosting right next to the BIG girls...it is funny because Polish are smaller sized and my EE hens are HUGE...and very sweet to the Polish.

Good luck!!

 

[tunaoftheland]

Okay, thanks. I've got a rabbit house and little run that I think will do the trick, it's big enough for a few rabbits.

 

[mipsy6]

I have a chicken in quarantine right now. I got her at a local feed store on Sunday and she's about 2 months old. She seems pretty healthy--lively, eating and drinking normally--but she does have a bit of crust around her nostrils and she might be a little sniffly.

I plan to quarantine her for the full month, but my question is: If the nose crust goes away in a week or so, and she has no other symptoms while in quarantine, can I put her in with my other two birds?

I know quarantine is to make sure the chicken isn't sick before you introduce it, but what if it is a little sick, and then gets well while in quarantine? Advice?

 

[mipsy6]

Another question: One of the chickens I've had since they were chicks has a mystery illness. She's had trouble walking for over a month now and hasn't matured, but otherwise is fine (normal food & water consumption, normal poop).

Once my new chicken is done with quarantine, should I be worried about putting the new girl in with my one sick and one healthy chicken?

 

[speckledhen]

Well, I'm the wrong one to ask. I will not treat respiratory illness, ever. If there was discharge dried on the nostril area, even if it ceases, it was still there. I wouldn't put any questionable bird in with my flock. Quarantine is not perfect, but it's the least we can do to try to keep our birds safe. It's possible that a bird in quarantine may become asymptomatic and seem to get well. The problem is that it was ill to begin with, if showing symptoms when you start quarantine. The only way we can know if they are ill is if they exhibit symptoms or we have them tested. If there are no symptoms, they are either healthy or just not showing symptoms at the time. That's a risk you always take when you get started birds rather than chicks from a hatchery or hatch them yourself.

 

[gumpsgirl]

Oh how I wish I would have.

 

[mipsy6]

Quote:
So you would just cull any bird with a possible respitory illness? I'm not sure I could do that. I'm more of a chicken as pet person.

Has anyone else had an experience with having a sick bird recover in quarantine?

 

[speckledhen]

The reason I would do that is that they become carriers for life and will infect your entire flock. Believe me, and others who have been to my place will verify this, all my birds are pets, all of them. They all have names, know their names and most of the time, come when called. I dont have livestock, I have lap chickens. And still, if I had one with a respiratory illness, I'd have to cull it. So far, I haven't, thank goodness.

 

[mipsy6]

Thanks for your insight speckled hen. I always have a hard time knowing how seriously to take issues with my chickens. I'm glad to have your insight, and I will consider your advice.