Hen Lying on her Side

[Em Ty]

I just got back from my coop where I found one of my hens lying on her side (her right side) on the floor with her legs were sticking out.

She's an EE that I got at the beginning of October as one of 11 chickens I got; I added 4 more hens and a roo two weeks later. The temps around here have been between 6 and 14 degrees F for the last couple of weeks and the coop, while not completely draft free, seems to be fine for the rest of the flock. I'm feeding them non-GMO layer crumbles, some scratch grain (not much), some scraps (not in the last 4 days at least), and I've recently started giving them some wheat sprouts, which is the only thing new. Their water is kept from freezing with two, 60W bulbs in a cookie tin, and I add vitamin booster and Bragg's ACV to the plastic waterer.

This hen has always been very stand-offish, though isn't near the bottom of the pecking order at all. She tends to stay by herself, often on one of the perches, and hasn't had any of the sprouts to my knowledge. I've brought her into the house, given her some food and water (with the vitamins and ACV). When I got her in she stood up in the cage, though she seemed to be walking very stiffly, and she hasn't lain down since, though it's only been about 30-40 minutes. She hasn't eaten or drunk anything.

Scratch that, she's now pecking at some bread bits.

Any idea what I'm looking at here?

Also, I've got two small poodles. They've been around the chickens a little; I've been very slow and cautious about introducing them, but I think it's better for the chickens to get somewhat comfortable around them. Obviously, the dogs are in the house with me. They're curious, but haven't done much more than mill around a bit and they're not paying her any attention at all now and are somewhere else in the house. Given that they've not been aggressive at all with the chickens, should I bother keeping them out of the kitchen (where the hen is)?

Also, if she gets better, how do I transition her back to the cold?

Thanks for reading through this long-winded post; I just wanted to try to give the full picture.

Mark

 

[Em Ty]

I know it's been a while since I posted,

, but she's now drinking and I can see that she had a very runny poop.

I've got her in the kitchen, where my wood cookstove is. Should I be worried about loud noises? The stove needs some maintenance to clear ash and open the airflow, which doesn't take long, but can be a noisy rattle.

 

[sourland]

Mark, not sure what is going on with your hen. Since she is in a cage I would allow the dogs access to the kitchen. Just for the heck of it if you have a rectal thermometer (does anyone still have them?

) take her temperature. Once she seems back to normal I would immediately put her back outside - to preserve her spot in the pecking order and so that she does not become acclimated to the moderate temps in your house. I would do this early in the morning so that I could keep an eye on how she was doing. Good luck.

 

[Em Ty]

Thanks for the suggestion, sourland.

She's drank a fair bit and ate some layer crumbles, but she's just lying down in front of the food. She just got up briefly, but laid down right away again.

Does anyone have any idea what could be wrong with her?

 

[Eggcessive]

Since your hen is relatively new to your flock I would suspect coccidiosis along with something else. Diseases such as Mareks and others can affect hens who have immune problems from something like cocci or worms. I would first treat her with Corid (amprollium) 1 tsp powder or 2 tsp liquid for 5 days. Most hens would be immune to the cocci on their soil, but since she is fairly new, she may have some infection. Worming with a med like Safeguard or Valbazen would also be good. This may not be the only problem she has, but if she does have cocci, it might be good to help with that first.

 

[Eggcessive]

Here is a little info on Mareks disease: http://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000791_Rep813.pdf

http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/search/disease/502

 

[Em Ty]

Thanks for the reply, Eggcessive. It seems I'll have to wait until Monday to get any of those meds.

She can stand and does to drink, and she's drinking quite a bit and still eating too, but she flops back down again after.

I took a couple of pics of her vent. It's kind of open; does it give anyone any ideas?

 

[Eggcessive]

Since you are in Canada, Flubenvet may be available as a wormer--this would be equivalent to SafeGuard or Valbazen. Corid is called Amprol or amprollium in Canada. You may be able to get a small amount from your vet to treat your chicken. I don't know what would cause the loose slightly open vent--maybe someone else has the answer.

 

[ten chicks]

Check her for being egg bound(b/c her vent is contracting,this is my first guess). Put on gloves and lubricant,insert into cloaca,see if you can feel an egg or even a broken egg. If you feel egg, give her a calcium or tums tablet,whichever you have on hand,keep her somewhere dark,keep her calm. You can also try a warm water soak.

 

[Em Ty]

Her vent is contracting, but I didn't feel any egg. She had very runny poop after that and dripped liquid from her mouth or nostrils, I couldn't tell as I was looking at the opposite end. On the plus side, it did get her up and moving for a short time.

Thanks for all the help, guys. Anything else I should check or do?