Weird flock issues, is something wrong with my yard?

[Crazy Maizie]

I agree. I will never use roundup or have my animals near it or eating anything that has been sprayed by it. There have been many instances of cancer being linked to Roundup, and my parents who live next to someone who sprays had 2 dead wild birds (robins) on their lawn shortly after the neighbor sprayed. I’ll take the weeds and anything else that goes along with a clean yard.

Currently in many states wild song birds including Robins are facing some sort of disease. We could all be quick to point to round up, but even the scientists haven't come to any conclusions.

 

[Iluveggers]

Currently in many states wild song birds including Robins are facing some sort of disease. We could all be quick to point to round up, but even the scientists haven't come to any conclusions.

The amount of lawsuits involved in the billion dollar company is enough to keep me away from it. It took forever to get science to prove cigarettes can cause cancer primarily due to tobacco lobbyists and multi-million dollar industry. Proven or not, I’ll pass. We can agree to disagree.

 

[Crazy Maizie]

The amount of lawsuits involved in the billion dollar company is enough to keep me away from it. It took forever to get science to prove cigarettes can cause cancer primarily due to tobacco lobbyists and multi-million dollar industry. Proven or not, I’ll pass. We can agree to disagree.

I'm not disagreeing about potential issues with round up, but I was pointing out that the bird issue may not be caused by round up.

 

[Wolfie2]

In Texas there is a state law that mandates anyone spraying a chemical that could affect a neighbor should contact that neighbor and advise of the upcoming spray so the adjoining owner can protect his property if needed. Don't know of that is the rule where you live but may give a clue what a neighbor is spraying. May try asking your neighbors. A lot of states have an agriculture extension agency which may be able to help with this or any other agriculture related questions

 

[ElizaMay]

Good point I hadn’t thought of that.

Their coop/run is right next to the field which is why I assumed maybe water could rinse the chemicals off. Their no way to prevent the chemicals from coming in the run being it’s chicken wire and not closed off like the coop.

You could try ditching around the run, to gather and fivert any run-off water. It needn't be terribly deep.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

I did not know about the pathway..thanks for that. And I glad to hear your girls have done well for 6 yrs on roundup ready grain. I respectfully disagree with the statement that it is not toxic due to lack of shikimate enzymatic pathway in mammals. There are acute toxic effects due to the surfactant effect while spraying if inhaled leading to respiratory distress (like most chemicals), albeit a low chance of eventual pulmonary fibrosis with repeated exposure..quantity and time. If swallowed or ingested, however, glyphosphate is acutely toxic leading to increased salivation, esophageal inflammation, nausea, vomiting and so on, increasing chance of aspiration pneumonia and possibly drowning in ones own secretions. Personally, if I use glyphosphate I do so early to mid-day to allow proper dry time and do not let my pets or children out to the area for 24 hrs. I avoid evening spraying because, in my climate, we get dew most summer days and that would not allow the product adequate time to dry.

Yes, our flock has done ok. The flock is closed and multiple generations have been hatched from our original birds and subsequent offspring. The millet, flax, oats, barley, wheat, and peas we grow for feed are not GMO crops. I was referring to the herbicides that may be sprayed on our crops, not just glyphosate.

I didn't state that glyphosate isn't toxic. Toxicity is relative. Everyday consumables that we use and ingest "can" be toxic. Water can be toxic. (Hyponatremia) Sugar, black licorice, celery, and coffee can be toxic. To keep it in perspective, caffeine is a plant-produced pesticide. Plant species that produce caffeine use it as a defense to paralyze/kill attacking insects. Caffeine and theobromine in chocolate are known to be toxic to canines. Many pesticides are based on plant-produced pesticides. Rotenone is an organic pesticide that's produced by the roots of several plant species.
https://www.acsh.org/news/2017/06/13/9999-pesticides-we-eat-are-produced-plants-themselves-11415

We have a neighbor who has sprayed with an open tractor his entire life with no apparent ill effects. He's still farming. We're not aware of any farmers we know suffering ill consequences after a lifetime spraying and we have not experienced negative effects ourselves. I believe our first-hand experience rather than sensational news stories. But each person should do what's right for them and what they feel comfortable with.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

I am hoping to get some insight from other chicken owners about my weird flock issues.

I started my flock last September with 10 barred rock chicks and a 6 month old barred rock rooster. I did lose one around 11 weeks expected to be malnourished. At proper age I integrated and they lasted 3-5 days before my rooster started convulsing and had to be put down. No idea what happened to him. He seemed healthy and happy until then.
Fast forward a month I started getting eggs from my girls. All was good until one came up lame. She was isolated and has do be put down due to not moving, look pitiful and pooping yellow poop (not foamy just runny). Less than a month later I got another one with the same yellowish poop and water belly. She too was put down, got too thin. I lost another bird unexpectedly to what I believe was egg bound but I couldn’t help her. Less than a month later I got another bird who was sick. Yellow poop, lethargic, and not eating. She lasted a week before passing on her own. After that I got another bird same symptoms, later got water belly and passed. She was treated for coccidiosis and seemed to respond well until it came back. At the same time I had another bird who started out with light versions of the lethargic and yellow poop but Corid helped, but she seemed to have some sort of respiratory issues (maybe worms I don’t know). VetRX was given along with AVC water. She last a whole month before passing after a cold night, and didn’t recover. I technically have 3 original chickens left, one of which was rehomed, so I have 2 left.

I have 6 new 11-week-old chicks who have been doing great until yesterday I noticed one convulsing in the chicken tractor and having thick saliva in her mouth. She lasted the night but is having a hard time breathing and sounds like the saliva is making it hard to breathe. I feed them medicated feed so I have a hard time believing she has some disease.

I try and take good care of my girls and I choose to use more natural approaches when I can. The yard if sprayed using talstar for mosquitoes and fertilizer is used on the lawn. I always make sure to keep them locked in their coop when the spray is used and they stay out of the grass for 2-3 days after fertilizer is used.

Is something wrong with my yard? I keep a clean coop and the older girls have a run they have access too and free range in a chicken tractor for a few hours very few days. The chicks get out in the chicken tractor for a few hours daily. I live in Michigan in the country with a farm field next to me.

Super rough year but I’d appreciate any feedback or thoughts. Thanks

Perhaps this information can help shed some light.

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poul...-syndrome-in-poultry?query=ascites in poultry

 

[McChooky]

The amount of lawsuits involved in the billion dollar company is enough to keep me away from it. It took forever to get science to prove cigarettes can cause cancer primarily due to tobacco lobbyists and multi-million dollar industry. Proven or not, I’ll pass. We can agree to disagree.

I had a friend who was a landscaper that I begged not to use it because I'd read so may horrible things about it so he didn't use it on my yard but continued using it other places.Now his family has filed a lawsuit and he is dead from the chemicals his lungs were exposed to.

 

[McChooky]

I had a friend who was a landscaper that I begged not to use it because I'd read so may horrible things about it so he didn't use it on my yard but continued using it other places.Now his family has filed a lawsuit and he is dead from the chemicals his lungs were exposed to.

Birds are sensitive to chemicals and have more respiratory problems around them than us.

 

[raingarden]

Back to the OP, you said CORID helped for a while. I would try treating the whole flock at the recommended rate and do the follow-up treatment in a few weeks. There is not way to kill coccidia in the soil except drying and sun eposure, although good sanitatin helps. You can only hope they develop their immunity before there is another outbreak.

Yes, there is always a possibility of toxicity. But the possibility of toxicity may be a red herring in this instance. Do the obvious stuff first.