White loose stools in 3-day old chick - HELP!! Updated

[RIgirl]

Help, help, help!!

I'm new at this chicken thing. I got 5 RIR chicks yesterday from My Pet Chicken and one of them is sick.

She's been lethargic all day and this evening I noticed pasty white stools. I've given her some yogurt and I added apple cider vinegar to all the chicks' water, and gave her some with a dropper to make sure she was drinking.

Can anyone tell me what might be wrong?

I moved everyone into a new brooder set-up because I wasn't sure the other one was warm enough at night, fresh bedding and isolated the sick one, sterilized the waterer and feeder.

I got them non-medicated feed (kicking myself) because I live in the city and the place that I was going to get the medicated feed (called ahead, they assured me they'd have it) didn't get it in and it's way the heck out of town. The place in town didn't have medicated feed, so I got what they had.

Can anyone give me any suggestions on what to do? I can go to the farm store in the morning. I went to petsmart because it was the only thing open and picked up some tetracycline for birds because it said for digestive issues and diarrhea, but I hate to give it if she doesn't need it.

Will she make it through the night? I'm so upset. While I told myself i wasn't going to get attached yet, this one IS my favorite. She's a little smaller than the others, has almost no brown markings on her and was really feisty yesterday.

 

[Imp]

RIgirl,
I'm not good with the chicken medicine, but maybe this link will help.

Imp


http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=17568.0

 

[FrizzleFreak]

Medicated feed is not always a good idea; it's what's leading to super-germs etc. Do not beat yourself up, this is fairly common in chicks. If the chick has a large sore on her chest, cull immediately.
If the vent is blocked, remove whatever's blocking it.
However, pasty white stools can be a sign of pullorum. Isolate the chick just in case.
Give her the meds, it might help, and it won't hurt.

 

[RIgirl]

Thanks for your reply. I just switched her water to medicated. She doesn't have any sores on her at all. I looked up pullorum and it seems possible. I guess I'll have to keep a close eye on the others, though they are all very active with normal stools right now.

 

[FrizzleFreak]

Did she come from pullorum tested stock? It's a very rare disease at this point htat we're trying to eradicate in the U.S. You'll need to report it if the chick dies, and she shows further signs of pullorum.
Here's some more on it, just in case: swollen hocks, gasping, peeping while pooing, sleepiness, weakness, loss of appetite. Postmortum: cheesy stuff in the abdomen, enlarged heart, liver, kidneys and spleen, white or gray nodules in the heart, liver, gizzard, lungs, and intestine. It's also possible that there are no postmortum signs.
Get lots of food and water in her, and good luck.

for not pullorum!

I just found out that RI's are one of the breeds more susceptible!! PLEASE not pullorum!
Also, keep her warm. White droppings can be a sign of chill. However, huddling near the light is another pullorum. *Sigh*

 

[RIgirl]

In all honesty, she sounds like she has pullorum, as far as I can tell. Her first symptom was that she was sleeping all the time, which I noticed this morning. The white poop I noticed this afternoon. I can't tell if she's eating or not, she mostly sleeps. She'll take water if I give it to her through a dropper. I've already e-mailed the hatchery asking about their certification.

At this point I'm mostly worried that I'll have to destroy all of my chicks. While I did isolate her, it wasn't until this evening, and of course they were all shipped together. I did boil the waterer they were sharing.

My kids have handled them, and while I made them wash hands, you know kids. Ugh, this is heart-wrenching.

I think they might have been cold last night, so I guess it's possible she's just suffering while the others aren't.

 

[RIgirl]

I took her to the vet this morning just because I was so freaked out about the pullorum.

I also requested the certification from the hatchery.

Good news is: hatchery is pullorum free and the vet says in her opinion she doesn't have it.

She said stress and cold led to not eating, which led to drop in blood sugar and infection set in. listlessness is from low sugar.

I was prepared to lose a chick or two. At least I know the rest are okay for now.

She died shortly after I got her home and gave her some milk and sugar water as the vet prescribed.