Week Old Chicks In Distress!

[aswank22]

I have around 28 bantams that I just got from cackle hatchery.
we decided not to vaccinate.
they were hatched the 19th of February and arrived on the 21st after being shipped.
I lost one in shipping and it took the others a minute to recover.
I’ve lost a total of 7 including the one in the box.
A few died right after getting home and the next few days after.
and then it started getting strange. We were gone all day and came home to one severely lethargic on Sunday. She died that night.
then today I notice one chick is hopping and refusing to use the left leg, another is slightly limping not wanting to use the leftleg and then I notice ANOTHER, SAME leg.
These are silkies

I have them on wood chips, brooder temp at 90° for one lamp and 100° at the other lamp. Cool area between the two where the food and water is.
I have water with electrolytes and probiotics made fresh daily.
These are silkies I’m dealing with. The bantam Dominiques in the same brooder are having no issues. Help!!
picture attached is of the blue Silkie with what looks like a swollen left leg. But I don’t know why three chicks would seem to have the same injury.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Brooder temperatures are a bit too warm. Lower them down closer to 85. Chicks can die from heat exhaustion. Not saying that what is going on, but it should help. I see a bit of crusty poop on the chicks bottom. That can be another sign of being too hot.

Bantams can have troubles with shipping. They often can end up too low in energy. You are already providing an electrolyte which can help in the first few days, but you may want to stop it. They should get what they need from a balanced ration.

Leg problems could be from a rough shipping trip, or a vitamin imbalance. What are you feeding? Is the feed fresh? What's the mill date?

 

[aswank22]

I will lower temp.
I’m used to larger breeds and from what I was told with bantams is that they’re more sensitive and need a warmer brooder by 5° so I’ve tried to give them a range.
Their brooder is quite large and the middle ranges around 70°ish.

I did stop the electrolytes after 3 days but then we had a few more look weak so I replaced and they went back to looking okay but the week I’ve had them they’ve only been on the electrolytes and probiotics for a total of 4 1/2 days.

I got a brand new bag of feed for them when I got them. I can’t remember the exact date on what the bag said because we store in metal trash cans but it was fresh!
It’s a medicated bag of feed. I do have a bag of feed my husband picked up the other day in case we need it that’s completely all natural

this one specifically did have issues with pasty butt but I’ve made sure to wipe his bum off every day to keep it clear. I’ve also used some Vaseline like a chicken book I read instructed for habitual pasty butt chicks.
I also make sure to spot clean every day so no poop is stuck to any butts because of a cleanliness issue.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It could all just be from shipping stress than. Where are you located? As far as the temperatures during the shipping.

 

[aswank22]

It could all just be from shipping stress than. Where are you located? As far as the temperatures during the shipping.

I live in northern Indiana. Right next to the Michigan border.
The weather was in the high 40°’s when I got them, which is unusual here.
Brooder was warmed at 100° when I got them but I made sure not to warm them too fast and shock them. Warm water was used to get their internal temp up slowly. Water was lukewarm.
im sure shipping had a result in losing the few we did, I just didn’t want something scary to be causing this strange occurrence with just the left leg being lame.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It is odd for multiple chicks to have the same problem with their legs. I don't know if anything except for things like slipped tendons, or leg problems from bad hatching that would cause multiple problems like you are seeing. Hopefully someone else may have an idea. Otherwise I might think it's a weird fluke.

 

[aswank22]

It is odd for multiple chicks to have the same problem with their legs. I don't know if anything except for things like slipped tendons, or leg problems from bad hatching that would cause multiple problems like you are seeing. Hopefully someone else may have an idea. Otherwise I might think it's a weird fluke.

thank you for all your help though. I will continue to keep a close eye on them and see how they continue.

 

[aswank22]

Update -
Out of the three acting weirdly I had one die. And it was the one that wasn’t worse off.
The three I had limping was :
A blue Silkie - doesn’t want to put any weight on that leg and it seems to hurt but he’s still hopping around and eating/drinking
A black Silkie - overall lethargic but is no longer acting like it prefers the one leg. It can walk and does but it seems to take a lot out of him. He is able to go to food/water by himself but is very weak and shaking.
lastly was the buff Silkie that acted strangely like it was weak or limping yesterday and today it was deceased. But to be honest I thought it looked better than the other two.

Is it possible that none of this is related and just the one got a random injury while the others were just weak from shipping?

 

[aswank22]

Also - since lowering heat I’ve had them all bunch together under the heat. It has been cold in the 20°’s here during the day and colder at night and with heat even at 90° on one side and 84° on the other they are acting cold.
I’m worried about the possibility of crushing one with this happening.
their brooder is a large metal trough like you see at the feed stores and what not that sell chicks.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Definitely use the chicks as guides for the temperatures. You may need to slowly bring the temperatures down. I will tag some people that may be able to help out.

@Eggcessive , @Wyorp Rock