Tab's Flock

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Le eggies have gone back to normal and Zelda has been offended by my repeated attempts at checking her booty for anomalies. Still putting some probiotics in food and ACV in the water but feeling generally better. I do think somebody is molting, there are tons of free floating feathers everywhere.

Her eggies DO seem a little bit *bigger* than usual, but aside from that sunburst anomaly there hasn't been anything weird. Except, again, the hennies are big mad I keep looking at their butts. Which is fair I think

 

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It has been about a year since I picked up my first 4 “hens.” Only 2 are left (one was a roo I gave away and one died) but here is a picture of adult Link not approving of the lack of treats.

Yep, it has been a year and today was the first day I found paw prints on the coop. They’re probably cat prints but they make me happy my coop has a run that is predator proof. Nobody seems stressed or upset about it, so that’s good. I hope it’s cats at least.

And here is a Zelda, still queen of the flock although now she has a dedicated roo following her around haha. Still not impressed with the lack of snacks, though!

 

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UPDATE: I LIED THESE ARE NOT GOODGOOD GIRLS. THEY ARE GETTING UNDER MY DECK. I CANNOT STOP THEM. HELP LOL

 

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So all joking aside, does anybody know why hens would want to go under the deck? Is it because it's cooler and there's lots of interesting, yummy bugs? Or is there something else going on?

Full context: Last weekend my 1yo red sexlinks found a way to get under the deck. I lured them back out with mealworms and blocked all the ways under the deck. OR SO I THOUGHT. Link found her way back under and I had to lure her out yet again. So I went around the deck and moved a few things around so it wasn't possible to get under. I should have gotten hardware cloth and done a proper job of it but I'm lazy.

SO. Laziness is being punished, because Link managed to knock over one of the pots holding the grates in place and her and Zelda went back under. So again, I tried to lure them out but this time Link was having none of it. I eventually had to get an arm around her and pull her out. Zelda came out when I dangled enough lettuce in front of her.

Further context: Link seems pretty skittish these days and tends to hang out by herself. I have noticed the rooster is bullying her quite a bit, so I wonder if she's so eager to get under there so he will leave her alone. *No other bird wants under there except Link and Zelda*. I think the eggers are afraid of getting stuck.

I wouldn't really care about them being under the deck except 1) what if they DO get stuck? I won't be able to reach them without pulling up planks from the deck. 2) what if they start laying under there? Stanky eggs under the deck, no thank you. And most important. 3) If Numair can't see his girls, he crows for them. Constantly. Without stopping. The neighbors already resent me for keeping a roo when I'm not supposed to. I would like to keep the noise to a minimum.

So, anybody have any thoughts? Primarily I think it's something to get to safety/be left alone while foraging/the novelty of a new environment to explore. But maybe I'm missing something. This weekend I will be putting down hardware cloth and stapling it into place, which will be a huge pain in the rear. Or I will be building a larger run and start to enclose them in it. Also a huge pain in the rear.

 

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Soooo sad and anxious. I'm 99% sure one of my hennies is sick and I don't know what to do. She was fine on Monday, I swear. I even found her in my fenced-off veggie garden, digging around and eating my zucchini plant. Just another day realizing I've been outsmarted by a bird with a brain the size of a marble.

Yeah, she was fine, but a little stressed bc Mr. Roo kept chasing and mounting her. Then yesterday, I kept finding her in basically the farthest corner of the yard possible. I figured she was trying to find her way to forbidden territory and didn't think much of it. And now, today.

Today, Link will not leave the corner of the run that she's tucked herself into. She did come running when I tossed down mealworms but refused the handful I offered her. That's really how I figured out something was super wrong. Link never refuses treats.

She's a 1-yo sexlink and she came from a hatchery. Yesterday, she laid just fine, as she did the day before. Today, no egg. Her crop feels...normal? Earlier it felt a little hard and lumpy but I massaged it and got some coconut oil into her. I've managed to get her to eat some scrambled eggs, coconut oil, and (I think) a lil wetted feed. Right now, she is in the furthest corner of the run, because I literally don't know what's wrong.

I'm down to a couple options:
1. Coccidiosis and I haven't noticed until now. She is the lightest of the birds and I think she's lost weight. Corid has been added to water to be thorough.

2. She ate something she shouldn't have. Totally fair and possible, as I let them free range in the yard.

3. Bacterial infection. Idk if this is what's going on. She has little to no appetite, is listless, either stands in the same place or lays in the same place.

4. Crop stuff? Again, idk, because I've never had chickens before. But the crop feels fine now. She just seems...Idk, she's usually my feistiest bird. She's one of the ones that took advantage of me putting up fencing over the weekend and sneaked in to eat all my tender plantlings, dig up my flowers, and roll around in the garden.

Siiiiiigh and no vet will call me back, probably because it's "just" a hen and I'm "just" another backyard chicken keeper. I've ordered some anti-bac stuff but I am so confused, concerned, and feeling like I have nobody to ask my stupid questions to.

Right now, I'll bring her into the house to isolate tonight and monitor throughout tomorrow. Hopefully I get her to eat a bit more and start putting on more weight. Hopefully it's not related to her being a hatchery hen and some sort of genetic issue.

Hopefully. Hopefully.

Sigh.

 

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Okay.

Miss Link is isolated and in a crate in the house. It is a large dog crate with a wire bottom, so I've thrown down some towels for messes. She has foods, drinks, special foods. A nesting box arrangement with some material put down for comfort. that cats are VERY intrigued but keeping their distance.

I did let her out with the others for a bit (kinda a no-no since idk what's wrong) and she DID drink some water/eat some feed. *HOPEFULLY* I will either 1) get a vet's diagnosis and know what's actually going on or 2) will manage a full-spectrum battery that winds up solving her health problem.

Gods, I'm going to hope for #2.

 

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Update on Link: After posting in the emergencies forum, I got some great advice and am now thinking that she was having trouble passing an egg. I have dosed her with calcium citrate + d3, and she is eating and drinking normally. She does seem a little sleepy though. If she lays a normal egg, I will probably give her the calcium citrate for another four days but otherwise let her rejoin the crew. If she's put on a little weight, which I think she will. If she goes off her food again, I think it will be Mr. Roo who will get the isolation treatment for being a bully.