What is wrong with my flock...please help!

Hello! I posted the other day but did not get many responses and there have been some more developments so I thought I'd just start a new thread. I'll try to be brief but want to include as much info. as possible in hopes that someone can help me.

We had a flock of 10 chickens - 5 leghorns approx. 1 yr 3mos. old and 5 newer girls (2 barred rock, 2 RIR and 1 EE) which are approx. 5 months old. They have been merged for about 6 weeks now and everyone seemed to be doing fine. The leghorns were laying approx. 6 eggs each per week and at this point only one of our new girls has begun laying a few days ago. The girls are usually in their coop and run which is a very good size - they have plenty of room to run, roost, etc. We do occasionally let them out to run in the yard (usually a couple of times a week).

Approx. last Thursday we noticed a drop in eggs from 4 or 5 per day to only 3. The very next day we began getting only 1 leghorn egg per day - it has now been 5 days of only 1 egg per day. All of our girls appeared to be happy and healthy otherwise - everyone was eating & drinking ok. On Sunday afternoon I found one of our leghorns dead in the coop. There was some blood around her vent and there appeared to be some bloody stool around her. Up until now I had not seen any blood in their stool.

I started to examine the other leghorns a little closer and did notice that a couple of their vents were a little messy but I do not see/feel anything unusual (no bound eggs, etc). I also noticed that these same girls are looking a little raggedy - I hadn't really thought about it because it has been a little rainy and then hot, etc. so they do tend to get a dirty but upon closer inspection their feathers don't appear to be looking as healthy. I also found some fresh stool that seemed to have a little blood in it.

I had some Corid on hand so I began treatment with that via their water - in case of Cocci.

Today I noticed that one of the leghorns really seams to be laying around a lot. When she did get up to walk around, she was very jerky in her motions and seemed to wear out and flop down after being on her feet for a while. She is definitely looking a little lethargic as is one of the other leghorns, although not quite as bad. I also noticed that 2 of them were looking very pale around the eyes, waddle,etc.

My question is...does this sound like Cocci? Could it be worms? I don't know much about worms in chickens at all and after researching on here I have seen several different suggestions of medication to use but I'm unsure which would be the right one and how to administer it, etc.

Please, any help would be greatly appreciated! I would really hate to lost any more girls and I'm worried about the others too.

Thank you!

Yes some of the main signs of cocci are paleness, lethargy, poor appetite, lying around looking puffed up. The Corid dose is 1/2 tsp of the powder or 2 tsp of the liquid per gallon of water for 5 days.

That's terrible! I'm not the most knowlagable on cocci but I have a prediction on the part about them not laying as much but acting healthy. Usually when chickens do that it means something scared them. and when this scarcity of eggs is always happening, it means the thing that is scaring them is coming back. It may be a fox or a coyote or even a racoon. Once again, I'm sorry about your loss

Thanks Eggcessive - that is the dosage I am currently giving them. They have been on the Corid for 3 days but things don't seem to be improving...actually they seem to be declining. I guess that could just mean that I was too late but I am just wondering if it something else. How long after being on the Corid should we see improvement?

Shortstuff, thanks for the post but I really do not think it is a predator - their coop/run is very secure and this is the first time anything like this has happened. I really think there is something going on with the hens as far as illness. BTW - I see you are in Maryland, me too!

OK! that's good it's not a predator. Yay! I fellow Marylander! I live near Frederick. I have never heard of Freeland though.

Shortstuff112 said:

OK! that's good it's not a predator. Yay! I fellow Marylander! I live near Frederick. I have never heard of Freeland though.

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Freeland is in Northern Baltimore County, just south of the PA line. No one has ever heard of it, LOL! Although I have to say that I kind of like it that way.


As for the girls, I'm happy to say that after the 5 days of Corid and a little TLC, they are doing much better and today was the first day that all of them started laying again. We had gotten eggs from one or two for the past few days but today we got eggs from all 4. I'll take that as a good sign that they are on the mend.

If you are seeing blood and one has died, I would up the dose to 1 tsp per gallon of the powder and give for 7 days. I had one that was not responding, and Freds Hens, a mod, suggested mixing the meds and water into some feed. I put in about 1/3 of a gallon, in enough for them to eat in a couple hours and uped the dose to 1 tsp. My girl that was not responding have me a poo that was half normal, half runny, in just that little bit of time...maybe 3-4 hours?

If you are using the liquid, try doubling it...that is basically what one tsp per gallon of the powder is.

You have a heavy load of it, it seems, and for a bit now, so it will take a bit longer to see results. Sorry no one saw or answered your posts sooner..next time holler at us and keep hollering if we miss you. There are so many people asking for help and so few of us that are trying to help, unfortunately we do miss a few people. I do try to scroll down and see if there are 0 responses but these past few days I have been dealing with my flock and am sooo tired.

I am soooo sorry I missed you!!!!

I hope things turn around soon. Oh, one more suggestion, if you can have a light in your coop, or can rig one, you can do the wet, medicated feed, right now...just don't let it sit out more than say 2 hours...I had to sit with them and keep messing it up for them as they kept walking in it...by the way...they LOVE it...even my big girl that I was trying to dip her beak, one of the dippers I was working with, ate a bunch.

Best of luck and hope it works!!!! Really see if you can get that medicated feed into them now though!!!! They usually don't care if it's night with a light on. and go up to one tsp per gallon if powder too!!! Oh and I put out their treated water, the night before, so they are real thirsty when they get up, and only use that medicated water. Don't give them any other water, just the treated and treat all birds, or they might not get the meds in them!

mommabird said:

Freeland is in Northern Baltimore County, just south of the PA line. No one has ever heard of it, LOL! Although I have to say that I kind of like it that way.


As for the girls, I'm happy to say that after the 5 days of Corid and a little TLC, they are doing much better and today was the first day that all of them started laying again. We had gotten eggs from one or two for the past few days but today we got eggs from all 4. I'll take that as a good sign that they are on the mend.

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I'd still keep them on for the 7 days...glad they are on the mend !!!

edited to add, I am also going to rest them for two weeks then treat again for 7 days and do a deep clean with ammonia in their coop. Seems ammonia works best for cocci! and change all bedding!

Mommabird, glad to hear that they are better.