Sick Bird-Not moving with eyes closed and head down

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alafferty

alafferty

In the Brooder
5 Years
Dec 21, 2014
3
0
30
I found on of my Rhode Island Reds with its eyes closed and head tucked into a corner. She is not moving around at all. Her comb is purplish, she has some feather loss but nothing more than any others. I did not notice anything else specific but I'm not exactly sure what else. She does not appear to be eating and I have not seen any waste from her. I separated her last night and brought her inside.

Taking her to a vet is not really an option Is there some general meds or foods to give her to help her recover or is there some guidelines on what I should be looking for? Any help quickly would be great.
 
Welcome to BYC. How old is she? She could be obstructed in her crop or gizzard, have worms, or an intestinal disease such as coccidiosis or enteritis. There are so many different problems it could be. If she is older, she could have a reproductive issue such as internal laying or egg yolk peritonitis. Has she laid eggs lately? Check her crop to feel if it is big and hard, round and puffy, or empty. Look at her vent and check her poop for color or diarrhea. Pictures sometimes help. Could she be egg bound? You can easily feel for an egg by poking a finger 1-2 inches inside the vent (use a rubber glove of course.) Check her skin all over and under the vent for evidence of lice or mites. Place her in a basket or cage inside for warmth, and offer her some electrolyte water, some scrambled chopped egg, and her normal feed. Probiotics and vitamins should be added to her water. Does she have any signs of a respiratory infection such as nasal or eye drainage, or noisy breathing?
 
Thanks for the insight...unfortunately she died this morning. She was only showing signs for 2 days, the other 4 hens are fine at this point. I was not able to deduce anything from her, lice, egg bound or anything readily apparent. We changed the coop bedding and cleaned everything in case there was something in the coop. They all are only 1.5 years old.
 
Sorry for your loss. Sometimes it helps to open up the abdomen and do a necropsy to look for signs of what the problem is. I had one last year with similar symptoms who died in 1 1/2 days from the start of symptoms. She had a blocked gizzard from sunflower hulls. You can open intestines to look for worms or intestinal disease such as coccidiosis or enteritis. It's hard to do these on pets, but it helps to know that it was not contagious. There are links to read on how to perform necropsies.
 
Thanks. That is a good idea. I already disposed of the bird. Hopefully I won't have to do it on the next one. Thanks for the help.
 

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