What happened to this chick?

[mrl8810]

I got about 15 chickens 2-3 weeks or so ago and everything seemed to be fine...the chicks are about 6-8 weeks old..already mostly feathered and everything. They all seemed to be healthy..eating and drinking normally..jumping around..jumping up on me..nothing seemed out of place. I walked out today at about 2PM and one was laying on the ground dead? I was outside just last night and they all seemed normal. Any idea what may have killed the chicken..I have them in a secure coop with hardware cloth so I don't think it was a predator...they have a waterer that waters them...plenty of food..all of the other chickens seem normal today..I did notice that today when I saw it laying there dead the other chickens pecked on it a little? They have shaded areas but its still about 90 degrees daily and I try to wet their ground once a day to help them cool off...any help would be appreciate.

 

[Amc29]

It could have been a number of things, but with what I have experienced this year, my first assumption would be coccidiosis. I haven't had issues with it before, but this year all three batches of my chicks dealt with it and I lost a few. To err on the side of caution, I would start them all on Corid. I may be incorrect on this, but I do believe I read that it thrives in warm wet conditions. It could have been something else, but it won't hurt them to be treated for coccidiosis just in case. It is common, and even though there are symptoms, they can die without clearly exhibiting any of them.

 

[Ebony Rose]

I would put them all on Corid for coccidiosis as 6-8 week old chicks typically fall prone to this disease, soon after their feet hit the ground. While treating with Corid, withhold all vitamin supplements that contain B vitamins, as the medicine works by imitating the vitamin that the coccidia need to survive... No food for them, means no more that parasite! After the full course of treatment, you can (and should) offer vitamin supplement in their water to avoid vitamin deficiency in your flock.
For heat issues, I recommend a tupperware/rubbermaid tote filled with water and large, shoebox sized blocks of ice in it. I make my own block ice with plastic shoebox containers like you can find at most dollar stores; the type with a lid so that you can stack them in your freezer easily. Please put the lid on the tote before allowing your chicks near it, and place the tote in the shade. This will give them their own personal 'cooler' to slide up next to. Adults can benefit from this same trick but the lid can be removed once your chicks are fully grown. Adult chickens will enjoy drinking the cooled water too. You can also add icecubes to their waterer, but due to their small size, the ice won't last as long as the tote, and you really don't want chickens laying on your waterer.