Is this "gaping"?

MarcyG

Songster
5 Years
Nov 28, 2018
97
192
161
Sebastopol, CA
I'm hoping someone out there can advise me on how to treat my chicken, "CoCo". She's less than 2 years old, and about 7 days ago, she stopped laying. I've noticed her appetitie has GREATLY decreased in the past 7-10 days. She's usually always eager for food and dried worms. She "fake" eats when I sprinkle a few treats out for the flock.
I set up a camera in the coop - and this morning I saw her opening her mouth widely (see pic attached). The coop is well-ventilated, and I noticed this behavior when she was outside the coop also. I've checked inside her mouth for anything unusual (i.e., gapeworms?)...but nothing looked weird. I've also checked her and the the other 3 hens in my flock for mites or worms. Nothing. I'm at a loss. Her crop seems empty when I feel it, and she's conserving her energy by not being as active as she usually is.
We have a local vet who also sees avian birds, but her next availability is March 11. Ugh.
😞
I'd love to do SOMEthing for CoCo before then! THANK YOU, in advance, for any guidance!
 

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When you say her appetite decreased, have you weighed her to see if she's rapidly losing weight?
What other symptoms have you noticed? Does she have bright eyes, combs, ears? Has she started to molt?
 
Get her off roost at after dark and put her in a crate, no feed or water in crate.
Check her crop when you put her in, then again in the morning before letting her out.
This way you can see if her crop is emptying properly and what's coming out the other end.
 
She "fake" eats when I sprinkle a few treats out for the flock.
I'd definitely check her crop to make sure it's emptying over night. Placing her in crate overnight as suggested is a good idea.
Also post photos of her droppings from overnight.

She's "fake" eating, so that's a concern. Re-check the inside her of beak for any lesions, yellow or white pasty material.
You generally will not see Gapeworm they usually reside in the trachea, but you should see signs of canker, mucous or something else that's off.
 

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