Hen Standing In Place Puffed Up Acting Abnormal: Help Please

[Poti n Friends]

1) What type of bird , age and weight (does the chicken seem or feel lighter or thinner than the others.)

Type: Twinkie is an Orange Ameraucana Chicken

Age: She is 3 and is not egg bound or cloaca prolapse. She hasn’t lay eggs for months which is ok some of her sisters also stopped laying for a while now

Feels: About the same a little lighter since she’s been barely eating since Wednesday

2) What is the behavior, exactly.

A few days ago after the passing of one of her flock mates Rosa due prolapse cloaca

Twinkie has been sad looking, puffy, standing mostly on one place, doesn’t want to drink and barely eating. She’s the Beta in the flock and always bullying someone and active but it hasn’t been the same since Wednesday.


3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms?

3-4 days and the last two days she’s been pecking at food a little but won’t take the water.

She is indoors with me in her own room with a buffet of options to eat (yogurt, water with electrolytes, grains/worms and plain pasta with beef since she typically enjoys that on rare occasions).

4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms?

All the others got a fluffy butt inspection and look over and they all are acting well and look fine.

5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma.

No sing off injury or trauma at all.

6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation.

Rosa passed on Monday, I been horribly sick and tested positive for COVID Tuesday and Wednesday when I went out to check on them and give them worms and when she didn’t come which she’s always the 1st is when I noticed.


7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all.

Yes eating a little worms and layer feed, and plain yogurt here and there.

Not eating everything on-site as her usual self. Haven’t seen her drinking much and when I tried to hand give her water she spit it out at me. I didn’t force her as I don’t want her to aspirate. As I am sick myself and can’t make her worse trying to do the best I can don’t want to lose another one of my girls they are my family all I have and God of course

8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc.

Looks normal to me; white/black solid with a little of liquid no blood, worms, or nothing strange.

9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far?

Wednesday: I noticed she had almost like a pasty butt when I went to check for bugs, parasites and mites none of the above. Her butt, wings, chest, neck area she’s all clear of any bugs but was muddy because it’s been raining a lot so I made her an epsom salt bath and soaked her in for about 15 minutes washed her bum good and put preparation H on it since she did have some poop stuck and it got irritated as it wouldn’t loosen up. I had to shave her (cut) lots of her bum feathers out that had the poops stuck, dried her, blow dried her and checked again her feet, legs, and full body in case I had missed anything she’s free of any injury or bugs no swelling and crops appears normal for what she is eating not super full.

Gave her electrolytes and water by hand and made her scrambled eggs which she didn’t want. Put her in a small box, heat lamp on and turned lights off.

Thursday: She stayed indoors still was puffy but alert her comb has been red all this time and it was erected. She ate some meal worms and rested in the dark room. No decline.

I thought maybe she was broody so I placed 3 eggs under her and she at first just looked at me and than pecked the eggs than I put them under her and she took them. That was short lived she didn’t want them and a few hours later she had put them aside

Friday: She was more alert jumped out of box when she saw me enter the room and turn on the lights, comb still red she poop normal, and started been curious and talking so I took her outside to the pasture alone to get some Sun, she pecked a little around but since I am sick when I returned back in she followed me didn’t want to be outdoors alone. But I left her out and let her interact with the others and she was quiet but I saw her scratch with them a little and fly away from the rooster a couple of times taking good care of herself like always.

At night I noticed in the cameras that all the birds had gone inside their coop but she was standing by herself outside the run door and I immediately went outside when she heard me she immediately came towards me so I can let her inside the gate I grabbed her checked her over she looked the same. Crop a little full she had ate some grubs as they are free ranged.

Try to give her some water with electrolytes but she wasn’t interested. She did eat about a table spoon of plain yogurt. I put her back inside in her room and she slept like a baby every time I checked up on her. No breathing problems or eyes or nose discharged and her inside of her mouth looks fine. She is just standing mostly in one place although she is walking a tad around in the room but still puffed up. No decline!

PS She was raised indoors for two years and just moved to her new coop last spring.

Today Saturday: Pecked at some food from buffet options above. Didn’t see her drinking. Left her indoors today.

She came Out of box when she saw me and was curiously pecking the floor and my towel in the room and talking for about 5-7 minutes than again stood still in one place and puffed up.

In three years she has never done this so it’s not normal for her and don’t know if she just wants to be indoors with me or if something is wrong and I am completely missing it because my own learning curve raising birds and also cause I feel so crappy with high fevers.

10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet?

I will need to treat myself completely as I am in quarantine and outside of taking care of her literally been in bed super sick we also don’t have an experience chicken vet here for almost two hours away each trip

11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help.

12) Describe the housing/bedding in use.

They have a tiny house coop, nice run and free range all day! They come in and out of the coop/run as they want to drink water, free choice oyster shells, grit and sand bathe in their sand box.

They have had the same set up for a year outdoors.

Thank you all in advance for your time and guidance any help will greatly be appreciated! Blessings and good health to all and your girls and Roos!

 

[nuthatched]

Has she laid recently? 3 is about the age when reproductive issues crop up.
She looks like production bird of some kind, does she lay colored eggs?

 

[Poti n Friends]

Has she laid recently? 3 is about the age when reproductive issues crop up.
She looks like production bird of some kind, does she lay colored eggs?

Thanks for responding, she hasn’t laid any eggs (the same for her sisters) since last summer. Her eggs used to be brown!

 

[nuthatched]

Thanks for responding, she hasn’t laid any eggs (the same for her sisters) since last summer. Her eggs used to be brown!

Hhm, I'd say she's a production bird with some sort of reproductive issue.
She seems healthy everywhere else.
I know the chicken vet is far away but do you have a local vet who can do blood work to check for infection or a fecal to check gor worms?

 

[Poti n Friends]

Hhm, I'd say she's a production bird with some sort of reproductive issue.
She seems healthy everywhere else.
I know the chicken vet is far away but do you have a local vet who can do blood work to check for infection or a fecal to check gor worms?

Vet is not an option. Unfortunately! Thanks