Hen is fine last night, down today??

[christwodog]

I have a 9 month old Ameracauna hen who was perfectly fine yesterday and last night, laid an egg yesterday, I locked them up in the coop at about 7 pm and all was well. This morning at 8 am, she is down in the corner of the coop, I thought she was dead. I picked her up and she was totally limp and she is not a chicken who likes being petted or handled much. I thought she had broken her neck or back, but she can move some but not enough to get up. I checked all over for injuries/blood, can't find anything wrong. The only thing I notice is a thin mucus in and around her beak. I moved her to a screened porch away from the others, and made her a pen. I was able to hold her head up, it seems she doesn't have the strength, and got some electrolyte water down her, as well as 1cc of Tylan, as recommended by my neighbor, who has kept chickens for many years. Any ideas? Do they go down overnight like this? Anything else I should do? At this point, I am very upset, it doesn't look good.

 

[AuntJamie]

Any chance she got into something poisonous?

 

[christwodog]

She free ranges most days with the others, we don't spray our yard and I don't know what she could have eaten that the others would not have. I guess it's a possibility, but I don't know for sure.

 

[AuntJamie]

Sorry, hon. That's all I got for mucousy saliva and lethargy. If it's not poison, I've no clue. Hope she gets better. I would think that if it were something she got into she would go down fast so maybe she'll work thru it and be fine. My guess is based on other animals being poisoned. I'm sure somebody with more chicken knowledge can tell you more. I'd say keep up with the fluids, tho.

 

[christwodog]

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll continue with the fluids and hope she can pull thru this.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have a 9 month old Ameracauna hen who was perfectly fine yesterday and last night, laid an egg yesterday, I locked them up in the coop at about 7 pm and all was well. This morning at 8 am, she is down in the corner of the coop, I thought she was dead. I picked her up and she was totally limp and she is not a chicken who likes being petted or handled much. I thought she had broken her neck or back, but she can move some but not enough to get up. I checked all over for injuries/blood, can't find anything wrong. The only thing I notice is a thin mucus in and around her beak. I moved her to a screened porch away from the others, and made her a pen. I was able to hold her head up, it seems she doesn't have the strength, and got some electrolyte water down her, as well as 1cc of Tylan, as recommended by my neighbor, who has kept chickens for many years. Any ideas? Do they go down overnight like this? Anything else I should do? At this point, I am very upset, it doesn't look good.

@AuntJamie has made a good assumption. Suddenly being sick like that could be from ingesting something toxic or rotten.

How does her crop feel? Was it empty this morning when you found her?
Any odors to the mucous coming from her beak?
Any swelling of the abdomen (bloat, feeling like fluid, etc.)?
Is she pooping - what does it look like?
Any signs of canker or plaque inside the beak?
Have you added any new chickens to your flock within the last 30days?

If you can see a vet that would be best.

It's so hard to know the cause of sudden illness. Try to keep her hydrated the best you can - electrolytes is fine. Don't worry too much about eating for the day - you can make it available if you wish, but water is most important.

 

[christwodog]

Her crop doesn't feel full, no pooping since I found her this morning. No odors, no swelling that I can detect. No new chickens ever. This is my original flock and I got them all together. She has no strength to even hold her head up, but she will try to pull away after I give her water. I am so afraid that she got ahold of something poisonous, but I don't know what!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Her crop doesn't feel full, no pooping since I found her this morning. No odors, no swelling that I can detect. No new chickens ever. This is my original flock and I got them all together. She has no strength to even hold her head up, but she will try to pull away after I give her water. I am so afraid that she got ahold of something poisonous, but I don't know what!

Can you take her to a vet?

 

[christwodog]

My regular vet doesn't see birds, so I'm looking for an avian vet now.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My regular vet doesn't see birds, so I'm looking for an avian vet now.

Seeing a vet is best.


If for some reason you can't get to a vet and you think she may have ingested something rotten, you could try a toxin flush. These are generally used if a bird has Botulism (ingesting rotten/decaying animal or plant matter and maggots). I don't know if they would be effective against something like weed killer/fertilizer or rat poison (for rat poison they need Vitamin K).

Her problem may not be related to ingestion of anything rotten or toxic. She may have some type of illness or disease that can have symptoms similar to what you describe. Like Marek's or Avian Lymphoid Leukosis - paralysis or loss of mobility and symptoms can come quickly with these as well. Testing is the only way to know for sure.

Here's the Toxin Flushes - do some reading and research to determine if this is something you want to try IF you can't see a vet:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/700526/flushes-for-aiding-in-toxin-removal
http://extension.msstate.edu/content/solutions-and-treatments

Keep us posted.