why are my chickens dying? :(

[jcasaglov]

Chicken newbie- we started with 27 chicks in March and as the chickens are growing, they are getting sick and dying. So far I have lost 6- 3 appeared to have had a failure to thrive and never got as big as the others. I could accept that. But what is upsetting is I have lost 3 "healthy" chickens. The one this morning was a little slower yesterday, but nothing out of the ordinary. I am giving them probiotics in their water and they get an organic chick starter feed, plus our "scraps". They have a large coop that was just finished last week with 6 nesting boxes (they aren't laying yet) adn I have been cleaning it out regularly. We did have an issue with mites so I have dusted the floor with wood ash and use pine bedding. The enclosed chicken run is plenty big for them and I have included lots of perching areas to keep them happy. What am I doing wrong? Is this normal to loose that many chickens in the beginning?

 

[toynutz]

Sorry about your losses... I lost 3 out of 5 when I started last year and thought I must be doing something wrong. But I wasn't... there's usually a reason behind big losses. It sounds like you've got a good coop setup. By the time chicks are 8 weeks old, you need to switch them to a good grower feed. Not sure what of scraps yours get but watch the salt and sugar contents... and make sure they get plenty of grit. Also not sure how effective wood ash is against mites. Depending on how natural you want to keep it.... you could try the less effective poultry protector and DE or go more chemical and effective with Sevin. As for what's really wrong with them, more info is needed... can you elaborate on their symptoms, how's their poop, were they vaccinated, could they have gotten into anything toxic? Could you post pics of your setup and chickens?

 

[enola]

How old are they?

 

[jcasaglov]

Thanks for the reply- they are between 14-16 weeks old. I have some pictures of the coop/run but I have to wait for them to download to my computer before I can post them.

To answer the questions, I am acually feeding them the organic grower feed- not chick starter like I had said before . And the scraps they have been getting are fruits, vegetables and some whole grain bread. I don't htink they were vaccinated, but I did give them the medicated chick starter food for the first 8 weeks and now I am just giving them the probiotics in their water (which I change daily). Their poop appears normal, according to some websites I have found, no worms, but some have had some diarrhea. Not sure who, though and not all the time. I am giving them grit regularly and I had read the wood ash does well as a control for mites. I also have DE which I leave out for their "bath". I'm trying to do it all correctly (is there a perfect way?) and so it is upsetting when some of my visually healthy chickens are dying.

One concern I have is a few of the chickens tend to have their eyes half open. They act normal, eating and drinking, but they walk around eyes half closed and as I approach them they will open all the way and act completely normal. I should note that different breeds are doing this- one RIR, a BO and a Speckled Sussex to be specific. I just don't want any more of my chickens dying! I have grown attached to them and as any pet I don't want to see them in pain.

Thank you!

 

[splum]

Have you given them grit?

 

[jcasaglov]

Yes, they have a grit out all the time.

 

[tjo804]

I have had Great luck with wood ash as a prevention not a cure. You will need to use something stronger and dont forget to dust off ALL your birds to get rid of the mites.
As for the eyes, are they bubbly? watery or just droopy?
Make sure for the dust bath you add some sand to the DE or it will spread a lot of dust up

 

[jcasaglov]

good to know about the sand/DE dust. I'll definitely do that. Their eyes are not cloudy, or watery- as my daughter says "they look sleepy". I have been dusting all the birds and I'm fairly certain I have gotten rid of the mites. I don't see anymore signs of them.

 

[tjo804]

i am not sure but would google lethargic chickens.

the eyes should be open clear and bright I believe that is a symptom of something if you have some that do have open awake looking eyes and behaviors i might try seperating the sleepy lookin ones from the awakes until you figure it out

but that is just a guess.

 

[emmaie892000]

Lethargy is a symptom for chickens feeling under the weather, you can search that keyword in the search bar on this site to find some threads that may help you.