Sick hen, standing motionless...help

[Annshens]

Hi. I need some help trying to save one of my hens. She is the only hen who is sick. She stands basically motionless in the coop and occasionally acts like she is swallowing. I've checked her all over. She has nothing stuck in her beak and there are no obvious signs of illness. Her feathers are not dirty. I treated her for 3 days with tetracycline but she has made no improvements. I've noticed her drinking but not eating. Any suggestions? I don't know how old she is as she originally came from an animal rescue. She is one of my daughter's beloved pets.

I felt sorry for her since it's so cold outside so she is in the house in a box. I've tried to give her oatmeal and an oatmeal muffin but she is not eating.

She just coughed and shoot her head and quite a bit of liquid came out of her beak.

She is also stinky smelling (a little sour).

***********************

An unfotunate update...Blueberry passed away tonight. She began having liquid coming out of her mouth and trouble breathing. I knew she needed immediate help so tried to help her by trying to empty her crop but I think there was just too much. I feel horrible that I didn't know what to do for her until today.

Thank you to everyone who tried to help. I truly believe you diagnosed it correctly. I just learned about this site and all the wonderful help available too late.

Your fellow backyard chicken lover

 

[Happy Chooks]

Any sour smell coming from her mouth? Is her crop full? Is it empty in the morning?

 

[rockthecoop]

I had a chicken, Elizabeth who had a similar problem. She would just stand there and do nothing. She would drink and drink but would not touch her food. I do not know what sickness she had, but I hope your hen gets better. Have you tried feeding her scraps? One of our chickens, Sam, was attacked by a dog, so we moved her inside and gave her water and food. She only drank, but when we fed her scraps she gobbled them up. She is doing better now. Usually they try to act fine with the flock around. It is very hard to tell what a chicken has or if it is sick because they hide it so well. They try to hide it because they do not want their flock to notice it. Does she act okay when the flock is around? I hope I was helpful!

 

[RonB]

Hi. I need some help trying to save one of my hens. She is the only hen who is sick. She stands basically motionless in the coop and occasionally acts like she is swallowing. I've checked her all over. She has nothing stuck in her beak and there are no obvious signs of illness. Her feathers are not dirty. I treated her for 3 days with tetracycline but she has made no improvements. I've noticed her drinking but not eating. Any suggestions? I don't know how old she is as she originally came from an animal rescue. She is one of my daughter's beloved pets.

What breed of chicken is it? I'm having the same trouble with one of my gold sexlinks right now. she has been this way for about two weeks. she will be 2 yrs. old in March. Mine drinks alot of water. I tried treating her with corid for coccidiosis. but I don't think that's what she has.

Try different foods. a few days ago I gave her warm oatmeal and scrabbled eggs and she gobbled it down. since then she won't touch it. now I'm giving her cottage cheese and yogurt and she's eating that. her crop isn't very full and her poop is runny water. I'm keeping her in the basement were it is warmer. I do let her out for a bit in the day and she does walk down to the coop where the other chickens are. but then she will fluff up like shes cold Last week I had a Austra white chicken that looked fine in the morning but by afternoon she was standing around motionless. I put her in a coop by herself to watch her. the next day she was dead and she had laid a tumor the size of an egg. I'm wonder if this is the problem with my sexlink. I just put "save a chicken" in her water this morning. It is an electrolyte and vitamin supplements. not sure if it will do any good

Good luck with your girl ! keep us posted on how she does

 

[casportpony]

Sick birds need to be in a warm place, like your house.

 

[Annshens]

I'm not a chicken expert by any means but she does smell odd (different than an ordinary chicken -- kind of sour). Her crop feels completely squishy.

 

[RonB]

Sick birds need to be in a warm place, like your house.

I have kept mine in the basement where it is 60 dregrees. I do let her out for about an hour in the afternoon and she heads for the rest of the flock she will eat grass and look for food. but she won't scratch with her feet like the rest of them

 

[Annshens]

She does not act normal around the flock. She just stands by herself. I was surprised to find her on the roost yesterday but this morning she was on the floor of the coop.

 

[RonB]

I'm not a chicken expert by any means but she does smell odd (different than an ordinary chicken -- kind of sour). Her crop feels completely squishy.

What breed of chicken is she??? mine doesn't smell funny . her crop feels squishy too

 

[RonB]

She does not act normal around the flock. She just stands by herself. I was surprised to find her on the roost yesterday but this morning she was on the floor of the coop.

this sound like my chicken. she would get up on the roost. But the last four nights I have kept her in the basement because of the cold night. Seems like I have had this same kind of problem with my gold sex links over the last 3 yrs. I had a gold sex link do this and die in 2010 and one do it in 2011. they wer about 1 - 1/2 years old