Chook Me!

Chicks? ---?

They start out walking slowly and low to the ground, but the still eat and drink. And slowly it gets to where they can't walk, can't drink, can't eat, and they start to lose control over their body's. It's like they're paralyzed, but having seizures at the same time. One has already died, and 2 others have got it, one is on the brink of death, and one is showing the early signs. They're in separate boxes and away from the others. What do you think it could be? Is it contagious? Help! EVERYONE! Before you say take them to the vet, know that I am NOT going to take them to the vet. We CANNOT afford to take them in. Thank you.

Public Comments

1. I would say they have some kind of diesease.. so i would seperate the sick ones and idk how to treat them for it since you don't know that problem just seperate the sick ones that is all i can say good luck!~Keira
2. I have unfortunately had this happen to me plenty of times. Really chicks are fragile, the weak ones die. Last year I was sent to boxes of chicks from a hatchery out of fifty some chicks only twenty-five made it to adult hood. Only two of the fifty some died when they were over a week old. Why? Well the chicks were sent through some terrible weather and arrived very weak. They went through all the stages that you described. I have also seen this with other chicks. I really don’t think it is a sickness (although it could be) I think that they are just dieing because they aren’t strong enough. If your chicks are very young and you had them shipped to your house then what I said above could be your problem. If not there are many other options, some I will mention and some that I will not. One is that the chicks parents were unhealthy- If the chicks parents didn’t have proper nutrients then their children will be a relatively poor hatch and not very strong. The eggs were incubated improperly- If the eggs were not incubated properly (by human and even the momma chicken herself) then the chicks could become very week and die shortly after their hatching. As of now if your chicks are very young (how down which is the fluffiness) then I do not think that they are contagious. If they are older then it is a higher possibility. What to do- The separation- It is known that the weak to can catch sickness easily if you want to separate them then that is fine. I do suggest taking out any dead or dieing birds. Where are you keeping them- Is the temperature right. 95-90 degrees the first week, go down 5 degrees until you reach 75 degrees. Are they getting wet? What type of flooring are you using? If you are using a slippery floor material it can cause issues for the birds? What type of feed are they eating? Is the area clean? Force feeding- Can sometimes help the revive a sick chick. To do this wet down the chicks starter and gently pry open the chicks beak. Put some food in his mouth and then dip his beak into water. Move his head upwards so that he swallows. Water- To help give them a boast you can put one Tablespoon of sugar in each gallon of water that you are using. If they don’t want to drink dip their beaks into the water. As for the vet, not only would it not be affordable from the condition of your chicks I would say that most of them would die on the way to the vet. Hope this helps, and if you have any questions feel free to contact me via email. Rhode Runner