- Jul 30, 2009
- 30
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- 22
I have lost my whole flock of pet chicks and I don't know why. They were living in a shed with access to a fenced yard. Behind is a mountain, so yes, lots of predators around. But I am not sure it's predators and here is why. Sorry if I am a bit disjointed because I'm crying as I write this.
The two big hens, Lincoln and Copper Penny, were wandering around yesterday in the rain. I looked over and saw them, thought they looked funny, and went back to work. A few hours later, I went to pick up my daughter at day camp and when we got back, we saw Copper Penny dead in the yard. It was about 3 PM. There were feathers everywhere in the local area, but no blood or evidence of wounds. I didn't check her carefully because, at the time, I didn't think to do it.
I looked for Lincoln, her always partner everywhere, and I found her in the weeds, in a sitting position, breathing heavily. She didn't move when I tried to pick her up, and when I saw flies, I killed her.
I thought the dog got them, but today, I went into the chick house to change the water and it was eerily empty. And there was Snowball, lying flat out like a rubber chicken, dead. Again, no blood or evidence of anything. No feathers around. Then I looked around the fence, and there was Mop-Top, same position, covered with flies. Just laid out, like she fell over. I couldn't find the others at first, but then I found Pepper, in the weeds, doing the same thing as Lincoln. Just in a sitting position, like sitting on eggs, not moving, breathing heavily. So I killed her, too.
The rest are missing, but they could be in the high weeds where I can't find them. I looked, but I couldn't find them.
The heads are tucked in, as if the head fell over first.
Actually, as I type, I remember other chicks I thought Eddie (the dog) got. It was the same scenario the chick was sitting in the weeds, not moving, covered with flies. One I tried to save, but her head kept flopping and flopping, and it was as if she had nerve damage on one side because she'd got in a spiral (the mop-tops, don't remember the breed, are more skittish than the others and don't like to be held). But the head would flop over. I tried to feed her and give her water, thinking the dog got her and she was internally hurt, but she died overnight. That's why I killed the others. I didn't want them to suffer, too, just to die overnight.
What would cause chicks to die, en masse, in such a short period of time?
I will be honest about the water. The chick house is away a bit, and I don't change the water as often as I should, and sometimes it does smell bad. It's a self-waterer from the farm store, so even though the water is yucky, it's always feeding fresh.
Could the water gotten bacteria that killed the chickens all in the same day? Why would Cooper Penny and Lincoln appear to be fine in the morning, then suddenly be dead or suffering within a matter of hours if it's the water? Wouldn't it take time for them to sicken?
The whole thing is so upsetting, and I don't know whether it's my fault or not. It just doesn't seem like predators if there is no evidence of bites or anything. And with the two just falling over, stretched out, in rubber chicken position, it just seems like they ate or drank something that poisoned them.
Any ideas? Thank you.
The two big hens, Lincoln and Copper Penny, were wandering around yesterday in the rain. I looked over and saw them, thought they looked funny, and went back to work. A few hours later, I went to pick up my daughter at day camp and when we got back, we saw Copper Penny dead in the yard. It was about 3 PM. There were feathers everywhere in the local area, but no blood or evidence of wounds. I didn't check her carefully because, at the time, I didn't think to do it.
I looked for Lincoln, her always partner everywhere, and I found her in the weeds, in a sitting position, breathing heavily. She didn't move when I tried to pick her up, and when I saw flies, I killed her.
I thought the dog got them, but today, I went into the chick house to change the water and it was eerily empty. And there was Snowball, lying flat out like a rubber chicken, dead. Again, no blood or evidence of anything. No feathers around. Then I looked around the fence, and there was Mop-Top, same position, covered with flies. Just laid out, like she fell over. I couldn't find the others at first, but then I found Pepper, in the weeds, doing the same thing as Lincoln. Just in a sitting position, like sitting on eggs, not moving, breathing heavily. So I killed her, too.
The rest are missing, but they could be in the high weeds where I can't find them. I looked, but I couldn't find them.
The heads are tucked in, as if the head fell over first.
Actually, as I type, I remember other chicks I thought Eddie (the dog) got. It was the same scenario the chick was sitting in the weeds, not moving, covered with flies. One I tried to save, but her head kept flopping and flopping, and it was as if she had nerve damage on one side because she'd got in a spiral (the mop-tops, don't remember the breed, are more skittish than the others and don't like to be held). But the head would flop over. I tried to feed her and give her water, thinking the dog got her and she was internally hurt, but she died overnight. That's why I killed the others. I didn't want them to suffer, too, just to die overnight.
What would cause chicks to die, en masse, in such a short period of time?
I will be honest about the water. The chick house is away a bit, and I don't change the water as often as I should, and sometimes it does smell bad. It's a self-waterer from the farm store, so even though the water is yucky, it's always feeding fresh.
Could the water gotten bacteria that killed the chickens all in the same day? Why would Cooper Penny and Lincoln appear to be fine in the morning, then suddenly be dead or suffering within a matter of hours if it's the water? Wouldn't it take time for them to sicken?
The whole thing is so upsetting, and I don't know whether it's my fault or not. It just doesn't seem like predators if there is no evidence of bites or anything. And with the two just falling over, stretched out, in rubber chicken position, it just seems like they ate or drank something that poisoned them.
Any ideas? Thank you.
