Chicken died. </3 Chronic diarrhea. Mystery sickness?

[mschickiemama]

Hello friends,
Please help me. My 5 year old henopausal rhode island red hen died a few days ago (she's in my username picture right there). She had chronic diarrhea for a couple weeks. It was pale yellow with white too & sticky. Sometimes it was just liquid. I guess the flies liked the poo because she got flystrike in her vent area a few times. I had to give her lots of baths and soaks to get all the maggots off. Gross I know. She finally got too weak and died. Stopped eating chicken feed. Ate small bites of table scraps (yogurt, bread, etc.). Stopped eating period. Stopped roosting. Stopped leaving the chicken coop with the other hens. Progressed to death.

I feel like I let her down & it breaks my heart.

What I did to help her: Antibiotic powder in the water, and electrolyte + probiotic water. The feed store guy suggested these three things. (But maybe he was clueless! He recommended some wormer tablets and then changed his mind. Plus I was there today & he asked me how she was. I said she died. He asked if it was scaly legs?! What does that have to do with diarrhea?)
I also gave her some Valbazen like the day before she died. But it was expired. I've only wormed my hens once with that stuff a long time ago. And I don't know if it even did anything. Plus it was hard to get it into their mouths. :/

Other notes---
--My other 3 chickens are healthy and happy!
--She had poop stuck to her feathers back there for a while before this diarrhea thing. I finally bathed and clipped her back there. But then she got sick so maybe I shouldn't have?
--My other rhode island red died a few years ago from this same diarrhea thing minus the flystrike.

 

[chicknmania]

I'm sorry for your loss. It does sound like worms, especially if there were no other symptoms. Just to be safe, if you can you should take a fecal sample from one of your other chickens to a vet for analysis, just to make sure. Or, just deworm then, to be safe. You should always deworm with a broad spectrum dewormer and make it ten days apart. There are lots of good dewormers on the market that treat multiple types of worms. It could have been cocci too, or cocci and worms, and a vet can check for both. Thanks for reminding me about fly strike. We have a hen sick with what we think is Mareks. She has diarrhea too, we've given her a bath once but she's getting to where she needs another. I've been bringing her in the house at night to keep her warm and keep the mosquitoes of her, it's been so cool and rainy, but she goes out in her small hospital pen during the day. I haven't noticed flies much around her but maybe it's time for another bath.

 

[mschickiemama]

Thanks so much for the reply.

I wanted to do the fecal sample thing, but I wasn't sure if the vets even know about chickens? Are there special vets for chickens?

My mom discouraged me to go to the vet because it could be pricey and she might just die anyway. And then I didn't want to go alone. I needed support. :/

But I wish I went to one because I HATE not knowing what exactly was wrong with my chicken! Plus my chickens are my babies...I feel like a bad owner. I'll look into worming them all.

I hope your hen gets better. It's no fun having a sick chicken! Tell her I said get well soon.

 

[Mutt Farm]

Your vet doesn't need to know much chicken to do a fecal float for Coccidiosis or worms. Should be cheap. Wouldn't hurt to call and ask? You poor thing. You didn't fail her. My state (Ca) has an Extension Co-op. UC Davis. Lots of local offices.They'll necropsy birds and test stuff cheap! Bet your state has one too? Yup on what chickenmania said, wouldn't hurt to deworm the flock.

 

[mschickiemama]

I wanted to call the vets around here and ask while she was still alive. It felt like the right thing to do. But I let other people sway me instead of trusting my judgment. :/ And now she's dead! But perhaps I'll try it now with my other 3 hens.

And wow! I'm also in California. Will have to look into the UC Davis stuff. I wish I lived closer.

 

[Mutt Farm]

Please don't beat yourself up. Once a chicken is in dire distress, racing her to a vet that knows squat about chickens might make you feel better and poorer, but wouldn't help her. Where are you in Cali? Here's a link you can follow for info. Hope it helps! http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/GENERAL/ceofficefinder.html and http://ucanr.edu/County_Offices/

 

[chicknmania]

There aren't many vets that know squat about chickens, even the ones that say they do. But your regular vet should do a fecal for you. Here they charge us around $18.00.

 

[mschickiemama]

Thank you all so much! Tons of helpful info + I feel less alone and more prepared for the future.
Peace & love
You guys are awesome.

 

[casportpony]

I wanted to call the vets around here and ask while she was still alive. It felt like the right thing to do. But I let other people sway me instead of trusting my judgment. :/ And now she's dead! But perhaps I'll try it now with my other 3 hens.

And wow! I'm also in California. Will have to look into the UC Davis stuff. I wish I lived closer.

There are four UC Davis labs in CA.
http://cahfs.ucdavis.edu/services/lab_locations.cfm

-Kathy

 

[Gypsi]

In Texas, if anyone needs to know, I think Texas AM might provide that lab service. If I continue to have problems with mine I will be checking.