What did they send me?

[Harvest Mint]

Updated Pics

 

[junebuggena]

Buff Orpington, Australorp and a Barred Rock (definitely a cockerel). The Orpington looks sick. Haunching up like that is not normal. Treat for coccidia, ASAP.

 

[Harvest Mint]

Do they do that when it is cold? I was fighting with them to get back in their pen while they kept following me.

Just read https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/coccidiosis-how-to-treat-it

So if they are sick then it could just be from taking them outside?

 

[junebuggena]

Do they do that when it is cold? I was fighting with them to get back in their pen while they kept following me.

Just read https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/coccidiosis-how-to-treat-it

So if they are sick then it could just be from taking them outside?

They are feathered in enough that even if it's near freezing, they shouldn't feel cold. If they haven't been on medicated started and they've only recently been introduced to dirt (within the last few weeks), then coccidia is very likely.

 

[Harvest Mint]

I figured they were feathered enough. I didn't know being on dirt could be so bad.

 

[ShrekDawg]

It's not necessarily, plenty of people have them on dirt and they do fine, but it depends on what you have in your dirt, cocci can live a long time in the dirt. Next time take a chunk of dirt/sod from the pen and put it in the brooder as babies to start getting them used to it

 

[Harvest Mint]

So the next set of chicks I start should be on medicated feed? I am remodeling my coop to have a brooder in it for ease of flock integration. Would that help them build immunity?

 

[ShrekDawg]

So the next set of chicks I start should be on medicated feed? I am remodeling my coop to have a brooder in it for ease of flock integration. Would that help them build immunity?

Yes, I would recommend medicated feed. Some say it doesn't help but it doesn't hurt and I think it does help. I think brooding them in the coop would definitely help immunity in general but I'm not sure about cocci specifically because I think it lives in the dirt. Especially wet, muddy, dirty and/or warm areas. Not that your area necessarily has this though, your adult birds could have just picked it up somewhere.

I would also take a piece of dirt from the pen and put it in the brooder. They get to scratch around in dirt and it builds immunity

 

[Harvest Mint]

I can mix the dirt in with the litter.I am going to be doing the deep litter method after I replace the floor.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I can mix the dirt in with the litter.I am going to be doing the deep litter method after I replace the floor.

That sounds like a good plan and should prevent any problems with future chicks