So, I have an Ameraucana who is about a yr old and lays her typical greenish eggs.
I purchased 2 Buff Orpington and 1 Wellsummer hens this Summer, who are probably about 6-7 months old.
I also adopted 4 Ameraucana hens this Summer from a coworker, who are also probably 7 months old...
I've had 3 chickens die in the last 2 months, all from the original 4 I got last September. The first one just seemed really lethargic for a few weeks; the second one had severe respiratory issues; and the third one was lethargic one day and dead the next.
I took the last one in for necropsy...
We put golf balls in ours, and they've been laying in there ever sinse. Occasionally one gets knocked out and we'll find a egg on the ground next to it :)
From another post:
http://agr.wa.gov/FoodAnimal/AnimalHealth/statevets.aspx
I left a message to the one closest to us to figure out how to get a hen to them, since I've lost 3 in the past 1-2months and I'm not sure of the cause.
I lost a chicken about a month ago to similar symptoms, but the other girls were fine. Well now one of my Ameraucanas is exhibiting similar behavior, but also looks like she is having trouble breathing. She stands with her eyes closed a fair amount during the day, and tonight she was laying on...
I have an Ameraucana who is mouth breathing, but otherwise acting normal. She isn't making noise like yours though. Are there other symptoms that I should watch for? It was warm today, but not above 80 and there's a nice breeze so I don't think it's heat related.
We've let them hang out a few times. The Welsummer (3mos old) is a little spastic, and one of the Ameraucanas (full grown) chases them away sometimes, but they seem to do ok together. How much longer should we wait? They've been able to see each other in adjoining chainlink enclosure for almost...
We recently lost one of our girls, so we're down to 3 Ameraucanas. I would like to get 1 or 2 more chickens, and was wondering if there is a particular age that I should aim for? My girls are about 9months old. Also, is it best to introduce 1 or 2 at a time?
As far as actually introducing them...
I had her sit in some warm water for a bit - I don't think she was a fan, but at least we got the waste off her rear feathers. I have her inside in a wire dog kennel now, so at least I can monitor her.
She's still pretty slow today. She was walking around and scratching a bit, but she's back to standing in place and closes her eyes a fair amount. I think I'm going to try to put her in a bath of warm water tonight to see if that helps. I'll probably keep her inside as well to monitor her...