Easter Egger wobbly, almost drunk looking.

[CatCohen]

My Easter Egger seems "off" today. She hasn't laid an egg since mid-November. (today is January 5) But she has been healthy. And, she suddenly didn't like me petting her. She always jumped up on me. Today, she was struggling to find the water nipples on the water bucket (I put out easier water for her) she staggered around almost like she was drunk. And tonight she is sleeping in the nesting box and not on the perch.

She is the youngest and does get picked on a lot. But this all seems so sudden. She is eating and running around. When I picked her up today, she didn't fight as much as she has been and she felt a lot thinner than just a few days ago.

I put out water with some Apple Cider Vinegar, but I don't know what else I can give her. We live in Phoenix, AZ, so the weather is not cold.

And we lost a hen about 2 weeks ago to we don't know what. HELP!!!

 

[orrpeople]

I'm so sorry you are going through this! Can you post a current pic of her? It might also help to see a video of her behavior. There are quite a few reasons she could be exhibiting these things. How old is she? What do her poops look like? Has there been a change in diet? You mentioned she's lost weight -have you observed her eating habits?
My first recourse is always to give fast acting vitamins like nutridrench as I try to figure out the problem - also, see if you can get her to eat something like scrambled eggs or meal worms. And then see if you can get some pics/videos.

 

[CatCohen]

Just brought her into the house. Gave her a version of golden milk - coconut oil, turmeric, black pepper and I added a b vitamin and a few drops of an essential oil called thieves. I have a friend that blends her own. Video tomorrow. But now I see she has weird redness around her beak.

 

[micstrachan]

Essential oils are very potent and not usually food grade. They might be irritating her, which could be why you’re seeing inflammation around heer beak (?) Do you know when that symptom started?
The wobbliness very concerning. I think she is either extremely weak or exhibiting neurological symptoms. I agree poultry vitamins are a great first step. And warmth. Even if it is not especially cold there, a sick chicken may need supplemental heat.
If she is low in the pecking order, the others may be bullying her away from the feed. What feed is she on? You may want to put her back on chick starter, at least for now. Please keep us posted. I think she will require your help to make it through this.

 

[seminolewind]

Wormed? No bugs? Is her crop filling and emptying daily? Will she eat a wet feed mash? If all this is good, my first tx is usually for coccidiosis for 5 days. My animal disease lab vet stated to me that cocci numbers increase in backyard situations and can actually give chickens a larger amount of cocci without making them sick just unthrifty because they get used to it. He recommended treating for cocci 2x a year. This statement is from the head vet of the Florida ànimal disease lab in Kissimmee Florida. They do all my necropsies and he's okay with phone calls.
After that if no improvement, I treat with an antibiotic. I feel that if the chicken may die, I can see a vet, do nothing, or give a general antibiotic that covers e. coli, clostridium, and staph. Aspergillosis is a common silent killer but there's hardly a treatment that works.

Many may not agree with my system, but based on knowledge attained and my necropsy results, this is what I do.

 

[CatCohen]

The redness on her beak was before I gave her the essential oils. The little bit of essential oils that I put into her mixture our food grade. It is from a practitioner who has the equivalent of a master's degree in essential oils. She creates her own blends and is very very good at this. I just checked on her this morning and she seems okay. I will try to take her out of the box and take a video of her walking.

She has been needing to my knowledge. When I brought her in yesterday I didn't bring any food so she does have kitchen scraps in her box. I'm going outside to get her food now to make sure that she's eating. I will go find a feed store this morning that has chicken vitamins.

 

[casportpony]

Get a kitchen scale and start weighing her daily in the am before she eats. You need to know if she is still losing weight.

 

[CatCohen]

She didn't eat the lettuce I left in her box overnight. But I just brought her feed and she is eating it, although she struggles to "find" the food.

I had no idea what the crop was, but after YouTube, I did try to find it. I don't think it is impacted. Although I did massage it just in case. She pooped very little and very watery. The red is moving up into her comb. I am wondering if her comb should be redder and I just didn't notice it got pink. She has not been super-friendly over the last 6 weeks or so, since she stopped laying. Her paralysis symptoms only started yesterday.

I am also thinking it may be a scorpion sting.

 

[rebrascora]

How old is she? I wonder if perhaps she may have been going through a moult. That makes them reluctant to be handled and can make them lose weight and their comb go pale and shrivelled like hers is and usually they stop laying. There is obviously something else going on and it sounds like her vision may be an issue as well as her lack of balance/coordination. The stress of moult can trigger other latent issues.
Check both of her eyes for any irregularity in pupil size and shape and test her vision with some small treats to see how she manages to locate them. Maybe place a few grains of scratch in front of her and see if she is able to pick each grain up without problem or if it takes a few goes before she gets hold of them.

What were the symptoms of the other hen that died? Have you added any new birds to the flock in the past few months?

 

[perchie.girl]

Just be aware.... Essential oils that are good for people may NOT be good for chickens.

You are getting excellent advice here from Very experienced people. who are concerned about your birds welfare. You stated you didnt know what a crop was... I understand being new to this whole chicken thing.... and how fast an emergency can make you grab at info as quickly as possible.

You still haven't said what you are feeding your birds.... This is important to know if you are going to get constructive help.

from my end *(i am not an expert in diseases) but I do live in the desert. And am quite familiar with scorpions. Unless you have a variety I am not familiar with the only really venomous scorpion we have are the Bark Scorpions.... Which can be found in the Sonora Desert and fringes. I am on the fringe of the Sonora desert here in California.

http://bransonswildworld.com/arizona-bark-scorpion-2/

Most offer up a sting the equivalent of a Bee sting... or a bit more....

deb