Very sick chicken help please

[cluckey]

Black goo coming from chickens eye, lethargic, skin and bones help!.
My chicken basically fell out of the coop this morning and hasn't moved all day. Her eye is closed with some black gunk underneath and he body is skin and bones. This is all very sudden as she was freeranging like normal up until today. I'll probably cull her in the morning she is so wasted away but I'd like to know what is wrong with her. She is 3 years old.

 

[cluckey]

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm sorry she is not doing well. It looks like she has an eye injury - not sure if the eye is still there or not. She may have been pecked in the eye or stuck it on something. The dark colored "goo" could be dried blood and tissue.

If you can, separate her and provide her with water (add poultry vitamins if you have them). Get her hydrated well before trying to get her to eat. After she is drinking, offer some of her normal food or a little chopped egg to see if she will eat for you.

For the eye - you may want to just gently flush it with some saline and apply a little Vetericyn eye gel or Terramycin eye ointment. Check her over for any other wounds while your treating her.

 

[abraga]

X2

 

[theuglychick]

If you zoom in on the pic it looks like you can see an orange iris behind the inner membrane. I'm thinking the eyeball is still there.

But then again, it could be just the way the pic looks.

 

[cluckey]

I do think her eyeball is still there. It's how skinny she is that scares me. No sign of mites or lice, feathers all look good and healthy. I have her isolated woth food and water. I dod that berlfore I saw your advice about starting with water first. She did start eating right away.

 

[twilightgecko]

oh my.. im sorry for you and your hen.. lots of tlc.. i can only offer the same advice.. keep her warm and comforted.. and water, water, water.. chickens dehydrate quickly.. it is sometimes hard to tell a chickens weight until you pick them up.. they always look fluffy..

oh good luck with her

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I do think her eyeball is still there. It's how skinny she is that scares me. No sign of mites or lice, feathers all look good and healthy. I have her isolated woth food and water. I dod that berlfore I saw your advice about starting with water first. She did start eating right away.

If she was willing to eat that's great. Usually if the eat, they will drink too
Losing weight can be from so many different things - can you take a fecal sample to your vet for testing of worms?
Any bloat/swelling or feeling of fluid in the abdomen?

 

[cluckey]

No swelling or bloating. I could probably get a sample to the vet. How do you typically treat for worms in chickens?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

No swelling or bloating. I could probably get a sample to the vet. How do you typically treat for worms in chickens?

How is she doing this morning?

She may have just injured the eye somehow or she may have had it picked at by another chicken. Being so thin and acting lethargic makes me think something else it at play. Her age may be a factor for reproductive disorders, worms or something else. It could be that she just isn't eating or is being kept from food.

Having a fecal float is ideal, but if that's not possible, it probably won't hurt to worm her to see if that makes a difference. You can use Valbazen 1/2 ml orally and repeat in 10days for each chicken or Fenbendazole (Safeguard, Panacur) at 1/4 ml per pound for 5days in a row. Both Valbazen and Safguard (look for liquid goat wormer) can be found at feed stores like Tractor Supply.
Keep us posted.