weak Hen!!

[Kuntry Klucker]

Well I have just seen this from watching programmes about wild animals because it shows that when they are injured they loose weight and get weak. What's their diet like? If not getting enough calcium then she could have been taking calcium from her bones for laying which has made her get painful joints/ a bone disease causing limping. One of my girls had a limp years ago and I did nothing about it because I couldn't find anything wrong and then one day she just stopped limping, it was really weird...

I am beginning to wonder if that is the problem. She has not laid an egg for a while so I know she is not egg bound.
She could have become calcium deficient and it took a tole on her body. I provide oyster shells but it is up to her
to eat them.

So maybe just pampering her is the best solution for now. Hopefully she will one day, like your hen, just stop limping.

 

[ten chicks]

Yes,i too have buff orpingtons,very heavy breed,in fact one of my roosters had a dislocated tendon from jumping down from something(not roosts as they are low to accommodate this issue). Pressed tendon back into place and after approx 2 weeks he was walking fine.

 

[Johnn]

Like ten chickens said, look at her poo and see what it comes under on the poo chart http://pluckandfeather.com/chicken-poo-chart-graphic.html

 

[Kuntry Klucker]

Lack of weight gain can have many causes such as worms,injury/pain(they do not eat as well when not feeling good,just like people)being picked on/kept away from food,etc. Have you ruled out crop issues? Her limping does suggest some leg issue,try the aspirin for pain relief. Bring her inside(if you haven't already)to monitor her for eating/drinking.

What does her poop look like,this can actually tell us a lot about what might be wrong.

she is eating well. I gave her hard boiled eggs and meal worms which she ate up. So she is eating.

She is at the bottom of the pecking order, so maybe she was just not getting the nutrition she needed
and it finally took a tole on her.

My perches are not too hight, they are the right size for their birds.

She could have still tried to jump down and hit something or just landed
wrong.

She has been the runt of the flock for a long time. Recently she was at the bottom of the pecking order.

I have since separator her from the flock, hopefully that does help.

I will have to look at her poo tomorrow and see what I am deduce.

What should I look for? and what should be a warning?

 

[Johnn]

Yes,i too have buff orpingtons,very heavy breed,in fact one of my roosters had a dislocated tendon from jumping down from something(not roosts as they are low to accommodate this issue). Pressed tendon back into place and after approx 2 weeks he was walking fine.

I have a shed with low perches and one with high perches. Luckily the Bo's favour the low perch one!

 

[Kuntry Klucker]

Like ten chickens said, look at her poo and see what it comes under on the poo chart http://pluckandfeather.com/chicken-poo-chart-graphic.html

Thanks for the link, that will answer questions tomorrow when I check out her poo.

 

[Johnn]

she is eating well. I gave her hard boiled eggs and meal worms which she ate up. So she is eating.

She is at the bottom of the pecking order, so maybe she was just not getting the nutrition she needed
and it finally took a tole on her.

My perches are not too hight, they are the right size for their birds.

She could have still tried to jump down and hit something or just landed
wrong. 

She has been the runt of the flock for a long time. Recently she was at the bottom of the pecking order.

I have since separator her from the flock, hopefully that does help.

I will have to look at her poo tomorrow and see what I am deduce. 

What should I look for? and what should be a warning?

Try not to keep her separated for more than 4 days without them seeing each other or they will forget who she is and treat her like a new girl which is usually worse than being the bottom hen. I kept my ill girl away for a week and when I out her back all the girls forgot who she was and turned on her. She luckily regained her place though. She is a BO, it's weird how your girl is the bottom my 3 would never accept that! Bella pecks hens that are even above her!

 

[ten chicks]

Poop that is obviously not normal,such as green poop can indicate not eating/starvation(other than eating grass clippings,etc)yellow foamy can mean worms/cocci/blackhead disease/bacterial infection,watery poop can indicate something as simple as drinking too much water or could indicate egg binding/cocci/crop issues.

This is why the condition of their poop is so very important as it is usually an indication of their overall health. No poop indicates crop issues or egg binding or starvation,blockage somewhere. Whitish discharge from vent can indicate vent gleet(fungal or bacterial). Blood in poop can indicate cocci/internal injuries/internal infection.

 

[Johnn]

I'm really hoping she gets well! Please let us know how she gets on.

 

[Kuntry Klucker]

Try not to keep her separated for more than 4 days without them seeing each other or they will forget who she is and treat her like a new girl which is usually worse than being the bottom hen. I kept my ill girl away for a week and when I out her back all the girls forgot who she was and turned on her. She luckily regained her place though. She is a BO, it's weird how your girl is the bottom my 3 would never accept that! Bella pecks hens that are even above her!

She is actually in my brooder pen. She can the the rest of the flock and they an see her. There is chicken wire around the steel wire.
The others can not reach the heads in a hurt her and she cannot stick her head out.

What would cause other flock members to pick on her? I wondered that too.