Sick pullet?

[MarlaMac]

Hello everyone.

I have a pullet that is acting off. I don't have a picture as tonight was focused on getting some vitamins into her.

My flock (all black Australorps):

1 Rooster
10 hens/pullets ranging in age from 2 yrs to 12 months
4 pullets about 13 weeks old

One of the youngest is staying by herself and mostly walking with her tail down.

I don't know if she is sick or if it could be something else. The big girls are bullies, but the littles can easily move out of their way. By bullies I mean, they don't like the little girls eating from the food trays if they are around. I take several trips out to the coop/run each day and make sure the littles get their turn at the feed trays.

Our flock free ranges, but lately everyone sticks by the coop/run b/c of the outrageous heat we are having - 102 plus - this has been going on since July.

I do take measures to keep them in cool water and make places where they can stand/sit in water cooled dirt.

I gave her 400 ius of vit e and 1/4 b complex tonight. She also ate a little egg when she was in getting her vitamins. I took the opportunity to look her over - no lice, mites, injuries that I could see. Her vent looks good, no poopy but. Her eyes, nares and ears look good.

She is very timid leading me to believe she is the lowest on the totem pole, even among the littles.

Any ideas? Should I bring her in for a day or so so that I can monitor her more closely?

Thank you.

 

[Chicken Farmer 222]

Try separating the chicken. Monitor it’s behavior and how much it is eating and drinking

 

[MarlaMac]

Try separating the chicken. Monitor it’s behavior and how much it is eating and drinking

I think that will be my course of action tomorrow. Thanks.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

How is she doing @MarlaMac

 

[MarlaMac]

How is she doing @MarlaMac

Today is the first day I really recognized something was off. She is very timid around the others. Today I observed her several times. Each time she was off by herself. If the big girls chase her she will find the other little guys and hang with them. The littles are all very civil to each others. I think she is very afraid of the big girls.

I don't see the big girls picking on her, she just makes sure she is out of their way to the point of being outside the flock. The other littles will dart when the big girls chase them away from one of the food dishes, but they don't do so as much as this girl does.

I plan to bring her in tomorrow morning and let her rest in a dog crate so that I can monitor her food/water and poop to make sure nothing is off there. She was very cooperative tonight when we gave her some vitamins and some egg.

I am hoping she is just tired. With the heat and all I don't see how any of them are not just tired. No one else is acting like her, so I just don't know.

Can a young pullet just be so low in the hierarchy that she will just stay away from others? My concern is how she is holding her tail down - not always, but enough for me to take notice.

I did check her crop when we had her in and there was food in it, not a lot, but some, so I know she is getting food to eat.

 

[MarlaMac]

Here is this little girl this morning. Stayed in coop until I flushed her out. The littles are usually the first out of the coop in the morning. The other three came right out, she stayed.

Didn't eat or drink with the others, but went under the coop to roost.

Walked around with the flock with tail up. When they all went back over to the run area, stood off with tail down.

Brought her in to monitor food/water intake and poops. Hasn't eaten yet. Put regular starter crumbles along with an egg sprinkled with BFL to see if she will take anything up.

She is the one circled in the group picture.

 

[MarlaMac]

This poor girl hasn't eaten yet today. Wouldn't touch eggs, BFL, cantaloupe, dry chick starter or wet chick starter.

She did finally poop. I am attaching photos. The small poop came out (or off) her when she was picked up out of the cage. It was hard as a rock, so we don't know if she had just done it or if it was stuck somewhere on her and it fell off when she flapped her wings.

They other one was done as we watched her in the bathroom. It is concerning, but I don't know how to analyze it.

@Wyorp Rock what do you think?

I have never wormed my flock.

Thank you.

Edit - she was given vit e and vit b complex last night. Vit b makes my urine turn neon yellow - is that what might be going on in her?

The hair in the second poo is from the bathroom rug, not her.

 

[MarlaMac]

Just got her to eat a little bit of chicken, maybe a tsp. Also saw her take a sip of water. We have a camera on her in our bathroom. Also is preening herself. I hope that is a good sign.

Picture of her preening.

 

[MarlaMac]

Thinking this might be coccidiosis. Any body else think so?

Getting corid just in case.

 

[MarlaMac]

Also - if it is coccidiosis and I treat I have a couple of questions:

1. Assuming I will direct dose her @ 0.1 ml per pound. She is 2.5 pounds, so 0.25ml daily for 3 days - if I am reading directions correctly. Should I also put in water AND should I treat my entire flock?

2. The feed I use have vit b in it, can I still feed this to them? Attaching feed label.