Sick pullet

[ownhens]

Hello Everyone
One of my pullets died her only symptoms were falling asleep anywhere, stop eating and die. I dewormer the entire flock of 8 pullets. After that, I also treated them for lice they were infected with lots of lice but the treatment didn't work I will do another treatment tomorrow. Now, I have another hen with one wing down I checked her and she doesn't have any open wound or physical damage to her entire body. She is doing same thing as the other hen who died she is sleeping all day while the other ones are eating she just close her eyes and I don't know what I can do. Any ideas?

 

[picklestheduck]

Hello Everyone
One of my pullets died her only symptoms were falling asleep anywhere, stop eating and die. I dewormer the entire flock of 8 pullets. After that, I also treated them for lice they were infected with lots of lice but the treatment didn't work I will do another treatment tomorrow. Now, I have another hen with one wing down I checked her and she doesn't have any open wound or physical damage to her entire body. She is doing same thing as the other hen who died she is sleeping all day while the other ones are eating she just close her eyes and I don't know what I can do. Any ideas?

Mites and lice can kill birds, if it’s a bad infestation it could have been there a while. What treatment did you use? What do you plan on using? Please stay away from diatomaceous earth since it can do more harm than good. Post pictures up close of the bird. Try to evaluate and figure out what kind of mite or lice you are dealing with so you can best treat them.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Sorry about your hen that died. How badly is this one infested with lice?

 

[ownhens]

Mites and lice can kill birds, if it’s a bad infestation it could have been there a while. What treatment did you use? What do you plan on using? Please stay away from diatomaceous earth since it can do more harm than good. Post pictures up close of the bird. Try to evaluate and figure out what kind of mite or lice you are dealing with so you can best treat them.

I used permethrin 1.5 oz per gallon but maybe I didn't dip them enough so I will do it again tomorrow. The lice I have pictures of them all over the pullet after treatment. Yes I think the previous owner forgot to mention to me that they have lice and i trusted her when she said that their chickens were in perfect condition.

 

[ownhens]

Sorry about your hen that died. How badly is this one infested with lice?

Very bad never seen something like it before. I posted pictures.

 

[lagrange chicks]

Looks like her crop is sticking out in the pic if I am seeing it right.

 

[ownhens]

The crop is big I don't really know much about chicken parts but if is the neck is very like a ball . Why would that mean something? The other hen that die had that part the same way .

Looks like her crop is sticking out in the pic if I am seeing it rig

 

[picklestheduck]

The crop is big I don't really know much about chicken parts but if is the neck is very like a ball . Why would that mean something? The other hen that die had that part the same way .

The crop is an organ that almost “stores” the food similar to a hamster pouch before it enters the rest of the digestive tract. It starts breaking down all the things a chicken ingests before the matter begins it’s journey through the system. If the crop fails to empty correctly or at all, the food can become impacted or even “sour” or rotten. Gently feel the mass of the crop, does it feel squishy or hard? Is it pliable? Check the crop early in the morning before the bird has access to food to see if it emptied overnight. Also does the bird smell “sour” or rotten around the facial area?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

FOod is stored in the crop during the day, it's part of the digestive system, but it should empty during the night. Check it first thing in the morning before they've had anything to eat or drink. If it's not flat and empty, you may be dealing with an impacted crop and that can be serious. Let's tag @Wyorp Rock or @azygous for help on this, especially since lice are also involved.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Sorry, pickles, didn't mean to step on you.