What's wrong with my chicks? Nasty pic...

crystalchik

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I have been hatching silkie chicks, and they keep getting nasty butts. I though this was normal for some silkie chicks to get that nasty build up sometimes, but this seems more and more, and I have even had d'uccle chicks having the same thing. I am constantly cleaning them, at least 3 times a day...its builds up and its hard and crusty but under it when I peel it off of them it is a nasty creamy brown and it has an absolutely putrid smell. Now occasionally, every once in a while I will get chicks that get dirty (esp the fluffy ones) and I have to clean them, but never this bad. It seems to build up withing hours on most of the chicks...now I have not been paying attention to see if the ones that were getting blocked up are also the ones that are dying later. They also seem like they have trouble pooping.

I wrote on here a while ago that my chicks were dying young and I didnt know why.
Here is a copy of it which is the same story: "I have silkie and silkie crosses that I have been getting. I have 3 broody silkies out in the coop and all of them are full of eggs. I havent been using my incubator because I would prefer them to be naturally set on just because the chicks are healthier. But recently when I take the chicks in (once they hatch I take them inside so I dont brake the broody), within a week most seem to become lethargic and die. No other symptoms, they eat and drink, no nasal discharge, runny eyes...some seem like they have pasty butts ... Could there be a disease they are getting? "

Here is an example of only about 2 hours of build up or so...these guys had already been cleaned twice today. If I dont catch it in time it gets much worse.

misc.jpg


What do you think is going on? Should I treat them, but with what?
 
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I didn't have any that bad! I had to soak their butts in warm water and wipe away what I could with a damp paper towel, and then pick out any that was left along WITH the feathers to completely stop it. They didn't like it but it worked.
 
What does your brooder look like--bedding, feed/feeders, waterers, space, temp.......To have that many chicks with pasty butt seems like it would almost have to be from something external and not just a silky thing, but I have no idea what it could be.
 
I don't know if putting some vaseline on their butts would help or not. I haven't had a problem this bad. I have had a few chicks with poopy butts (I think they got that way from getting too hot maybe). This didn't go on past a week or two old
 
We had one at school who got pasty butt (named him Boudreaux after the butt paste . . .LOL), and it was even worse than yours. After cleaning off the fecal matter, we wiped his bottom with olive oil. That seemed to help prevent future cases. I'm sure it was also soothing to him after soaking his butt in warm water and picking off poo (and some fluff that came with it).
 

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