Livestock Chicks with Pasted Butts

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This too shall pass.
I thought I had this problem figured out -- haven't had pasted butts in a long time, maybe 12 or 15 years. That's about when I started raising chicks mostly on game bird starter instead of chick starter, so I figured there must be a connection. Well, maybe. But I've got a batch of bantam chicks, and at least half of them have pasted butts. Sigh. It's frustrating. Also interesting. The chicks are about half Rhode Island Reds (bantam) and Buff Orpingtons (bantam). The BO's are pasted up a lot worse than the RIR's, although some of the RIR's are pasted up a little bit. So there may be a genetic factor, in addition to feed. Anyone have thoughts on causes and solutions? I'd rather prevent this than deal with the caked-on poop, if at all possible.

Kathleen
 

summerthyme

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Hmmm... I've only seen it maybe twice out of hundreds of chicks over the years. I wonder if you reduced the protein in the feed a LITTLE... I'd add some cornmeal... if it would help? "too rich" of feed causes diarrhea in most livestock.

I think I read a smear of Vaseline on the little butts can help prevent it, once you've got them clean.

Summerthyme
 

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This too shall pass.
Thanks -- I'll try both of those. We used to get several pasted up with just about every batch of chicks until I started using the game bird starter, I was just surprised to see it show up again after so long without it.

Kathleen
 
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