Pearce Pastures: Where did I go?

[Southern by choice]

I was wondering about cocci. The other thing is if they are cornish cross (you probably already know this) you must remove feed after so many hours. I was wondering if you had done your own necropsy? I have lost a few birds that suddenly gorged themselves and choked to death.

S and G poultry does sell heritage meat birds. They also go beyond NPIP protocol. They DO test for MG/MS etc!

We have had all 4 different meat birds. They are NOT like the Frankenstein Cornish cross. They do grow slower. We had Heritage white, Rainbow, Red ranger, Turken NN. I won't do the rainbows again. The Turkens are delicious but are slower growing. The turkens are better hand plucked as their skin is extremely delicate and the pluckers can tear them. These Turkens ARE NOT your "normal" turkens. We kept some of the rangers and turkens out to breed out. They are giant, the girls just started to lay. We got ours in June. We honestly did not have great results but I believe that was due to an extreme heat wave of 100+ degrees for 3 straight weeks with no rain, and they just didn't want to really eat. We had the same problems witt=h our breeding/laying stock. They are also free ranged in a seperate field from my breeding and laying stock. The Heritage whites were all around 7-8 lbs . This was the only place I found that has MG/MS free birds. Their customer service was great and they throw in extra birds in case there is a loss due to shipping.

Hope it gets better for you!

 

[Pearce Pastures]

Thanks all. Two more are dying right now I did not know about the food limiting and feel like a fool for it. I just went out and took the feed away and will be timing out how much food access they have from now on. I just PMd with this question but I will post it here too. I think their hearts are failing.

I sat watching and holding the ones that are going right now and noticed that their combs and skin are a purple-blue tone instead of pink-red which makes me think they are not getting oxygen---heart failure is what I found in looking this up. I know that these birds can have trouble with that but will limiting their food intake help? Is there anything else to be done that any of you might know about?

So bummed right now...I am thinking I might just process them all even though they aren't up to the ideal weight and just be done with this for now.

 

[bonbean01]

Awww...I'm so sorry

I have no clue what more you could be doing. If it is heart failure, nothing you could do

 

[ThreeBoysChicks]

Sorry about the feeling of not knowing.

Definitely limit their food. I raised broilers one time, and did not have a good experience. We then went to raising the extra roosters ourselves.

 

[Southern by choice]

 

[Bridgemoof]

Aww that's so sad. Sorry Pearce

 

[Pearce Pastures]

Thanks for the hugs and advice. I had my dad put one out of it's misery that was going and when I went out earlier, the other had died. That one I am sure had a heart attack---legs in the air, on its back, blue comb, just like all the descriptions. I am looking into possibly testing to make sure we are not dealing with something else (so far though, the one state lab I found charges $88 for a necropsy and additional for individual tests). I might call my vet to take a look to get his thoughts too. I wonder if he could put a steth on any that starting getting blue and see if there is anything heart-wise that he can hear.

And SBC thanks so much for all of the info today and I am really thinking over some things right now regarding how we raise our meat and keep our birds safe. We looked up turkens by the way.... Some of the pics we saw looks, well...like they really should be wearing pants on their necks to keep from being indecent. We may try them at some point to see how we like the meat but I can already hear the wisecracks from DH, my dad, brother, and sons.

 

[Pearce Pastures]

Sharing a few articles on Blue-Comb

Link to one...
http://naldc.nal.usda.gov/download/IND43894732/PDF

And another...

Bluecomb is a disease that can occur in chickens, turkeys, and quail. It is also known as pullet disease, avian monocytosis, new wheat disease, X-disease, summer disease, and mud fever. It occurs most commonly in hot summer months, usually between June and November, and affects young birds under 2 years of age.

Avian vets have worked for years to determine the cause of bluecomb. The disease resembles an infection in the way it travels through a flock of birds. In most cases it is a disturbance of the metabolic system, although a virus is a suspected cause.

D. E. Stover, of the California Department of Agriculture, Sacramento, CA found the virus of Newcastle disease in outbreaks of bluecomb, so several people associate bluecomb with the virus of Newcastle. This is a faulty theory, since there are several possible causes of bluecomb. Birds in early stages of the Luekosis disease often develop a bluecomb, several other things including staphylococcal and streptococcal infections and infections of the intestinal tract, can cause a blue comb. There is also a possibility that Bluecomb is caused by a mineral imbalance.

Although there are precautions that you can take against bluecomb, you can not prevent it completely. Because it has been discovered that bluecomb is usually due to poor breeding, hatchery birds are more susceptible to bluecomb than farm birds.

The symptoms of bluecomb will change depending on the severity of the birds illness. Possible symptoms could include depression, loss of appetite, blue/black comb and wattles, sour crop, and drop in egg production. A large majority of birds recover from this ailment if treated properly, however up to 80% of a flock can be killed if neglected. You can never tell if your birds case is fatal or not until the very end, so it is always best to treat your bird as soon as possible to prevent death.

After an outbreak of Bluecomb, it is vital to make sure that your birds have ample supply of clean, cold water, and grain. Molasses can be helpful, as well as some form of potassium. Antibiotics, such as Aureomycin, Terramycin, Streptomycin, Duramycin, and penicillin, are highly advised for the well being of your flock.

Bluecomb can be fatal, but it does not have to be. If you just treat your birds properly and administer the proper antibiotics, bluecomb does not need to be any more dangerous than a head cold.

 

[Straw Hat Kikos]

Hey Turkens are cool birds. I only like them as meat bird though. If you have them as layers, they are so dumb. And they bite!! But as meat birds....yum

 

[ragdollcatlady]

I have raised several batches of cornish cross babies.

I usually only lose a few at the baby stage, when one or 2 get trampled by others walking on their necks while they are sleeping. I don't let them sit in front of feeders....ours have to range to eat food that we put in small piles on the ground....when the food is gone, they have to get up and move. I raise mine longer than average, 6-9 months and they are huge, but not as big as if we had let them sit in front feeders and not move. Their meat is a little firmer and if you want softer meat, less exercise or earlier butchering are recommended.

I don't usually use the medicated food either, but if coccidia is a problem, you definitely want to.

Your birds might have cocidia or possibly some other disease, but they aren't bred for longevity. Their hearts might be just giving out.

Just curious, are they fed GMO corn or soy at all? Survival rates could be much lower if GMOs are present in their feed or if the pellets/crumbles/processed foods contain GMOs.

Sorry to hear about losing your babies. Hope the rest make it.