Drooling, Lethargic Hen

1) What type of bird , age and weight (does the chicken seem or feel lighter or thinner than the others.). 11 moth old Araucana hen. Weight appears to be the same as others.

2) What is the behavior, exactly. Hen is fluffed up, lethargic, and reluctant to move. She has been drooling a thick, smelly drool (medical experience talking, it smells kinda like infectious pus from an abscess), it is coating her beak tip, and a spot on her chest is covered with it from where she has been resting her head. She barely registered when I picked her up to examine her, usually she chirps and reacts. NO discharge from her nostrils at all, and her breathing is clear with no crackling, not labored, or anything unusual. She has been keeping her eyes closed mostly, and her face appears a bit swollen.

3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms? Noticed this morning when I fed the birds. She wasn't outside the coop waiting to free range, and was fluffed up in the roosting area with her eyes closed.

4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms? No, everyone else is alert and acting normal

5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma. No

6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation. Not that I know of

7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all. Her crop was completely empty. I don't think she'd drank recently either. Over the past few hours I've given her, 10 mLs total at a time, of pedialyte. Her swallow reflex is still strong, or else I wouldn't. She doesn't struggle at all and drinks whatever lands in her beak.

8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc. None passed to observe

9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far? Other than the pedialyte for hydration, nothing until advised.

10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet? Treat myself, there isn't any vet in the area who can treat birds. I have a few medications on hand, like Pen G and Oxytetracycline (both injectable), corid, and vitamin b complex.

11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help.

12) Describe the housing/bedding in use. 6 x 10 chicken coop, housed with eight other chickens. Pine shavings done in deep litter method, which just got a 100% change a week ago.

The hen is inside now, in a cat carrier. It is getting down to 20 degrees tonight after being warm for a few weeks, so I don't think she could handle that cold. I'd rather get her healthy again and deal with reintroduction.

Not even any ideas? I'd hate to treat her willy nilly or not treat her, both might cause suffering. I probably should just cull her now, but I wanted to give her a chance. She hasn't improved overnight with fluids and warmth.

I found this. You said she has been drooling a thick smelly drool. Do you think she has a sour crop? (Yeast infection)


Is more hard or like a water balloon? Sour crop will be like a water balloon; whereas, an impacted crop is hard. "Doughy" kinda sounds normal, but that is a vague enough term that it can encompass the whole range of possible problems. Is her crop still full in the morning when she awakes?

If sour crop:
Massaging the crop in a downward motion. Hold all food from her and give her water with some apple cider vinegar (ACV) added to it (preferably ACV with mother, but regular will do). Make sure it is in plastic or glass as ACV corrodes metal and this can be toxic. A few times a day (as available anyway), give her an irrigation syringe full of 1/2 ACV - 1/2 water. This will take some patience as you can only give a little bit at a time to ensure she doesn't choke on it. I had a hen with sour crop that I would massage her crop while giving her the syringe. It would gurgle something nasty and she would have gnarly burps, but she started pushing up against my hand to keep massaging her crop and would open her beak for more of the ACV mixture, so it must've felt better. Sour crop is a yeast infection in the crop (hence hold food so it doesn't ferment more in there). The ACV kills the yeast. After a couple days you should see a difference and after 4 or so days, she should be near normal. Sour crop kills, so act quickly.

If an impacted crop:
Hold food. Give olive oil soaked bread (the bread is just to get the olive oil into the bird). Oil seems to be the best remedy as it slicks up the passage way to allow for food to pass through. It gets tougher it is long grass/hay stuck.

Her crop was completely empty when I brought her inside, and since she has only gotten fluids since then (I am going to try and see if she'll take some oatmeal soon), it is still empty. That was one of the first things I checked, given the very odorous drool. If it were impacted, I'd expect it to be full of material, right? Can a bird get sour crop with an empty crop? I might see if she'll take some water mixed with ACV because I know it has other benefits, too.

If it doesn't feel like a water balloon then I would say that it's not sour crop. Do you have this site?

http://poultrykeeper.com/poultry-diseases-and-disorders.html


I also found this site
https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry

I really don't know anything ....just trying to help. It does mention mucus from mouth. does she have any other symptoms like these?

Diagnose Fowl Cholera

• Symptoms: Lameness from joint infections. Fever, reduced eating, labored breathing, mucus coming from mouth, ruffled feathers, diarrhea. Joints and footpads may swell.
  • Not usually seen in chicks.
• Use Sulfa drugs or other Antibiotics for treatment.

Fowl Cholera seems to be the most fitting disease description I've seen thus far! She may be lame, but she doesn't move enough to give a good indication. And she did pass some watery stool, though that may be because she hasn't eaten anything on her own recently.

I went ahead and dosed her with 100 mg of oxytetracycline SubQ. She didn't even flinch or make a peep when the needle broke the skin, poor gal. Thank you for all your help, disease issues seem to be the hardest to know what to do.

I know what you mean....they are very tough to figure out........I try to learn from others by helping them and researching as I go.

Good Luck!

Keep us posted.

Some improvement today in the form of increased reaction to handling. She managed some protest squawking when she got her oxy dose today. I'd rather have her alert and fighting than limp as a fish!

Great! Good Job!

I figured I'd post an update. She is on the road to recovery! She was doing so well she went back out with the flock. She is still not 100%, but much better. Things could have gone a lot worse, all things considered.