àm at a loss now she's not eating at all

[TomandBarbara]

This is penny our 3 & 1/2 yr bluebell. Since a the girls were wormed (flubenvet premix pellets) she has barely eaten. Today she took some chopped grape and I've seen her have a couple of mouthful of water which has poultry tonic in it.
We've tried everything to get her to eat but she is now down to 1.6kg in weight.she sleeps a lot and is not interested in things around her.
We have had her separate from the other girls to monitor her and today she had a wander in the garden but all she wants to do crouch in a corner.
I'm lost for ideas to help her.

 

[TomandBarbara]

 

[emmaie892000]

Is her crop swollen or is that just her feathers poofing out?

 

[TomandBarbara]

She's fluffed up.her crop is empty and there's no trouble breathing or foul smells at all.

 

[MrsBachbach]

She's fluffed up.her crop is empty and there's no trouble breathing or foul smells at all.

her comb looks pale. i would suspect worms or coccidiosis. cocci is a bit rare in older chickens, but it can happen, especially if you introduced new birds. So, I would look for a wormer, like Safeguard:
https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail...pcrid|7777073116|pkw|safeguard wormer|pmt|bp|

that you can dose directly in her mouth. You may not have that product there, but you may have similar products with the same drug. You can find the dosage amount for your bird by searching "safeguard dosage" on this site.
If she has been effectively wormed recently, you may check her for coccidiosis or treat her for it. If you want to make sure, take a stool sample to your vet. In the meantime, you might consider tempting her with some finely chopped hard boiled egg, cooked rice or other treats to get her to eat. Or you might have to consider tube feeding her if she still refuses. But make sure you hydrate her with water before starting a feeding regime. I think a good vitamin/mineral supplement would help her out.
If she doesn't have worms and cocci isn't the problem, she may have picked up a viral or bacterial infection. You say there are no respiratory symptoms, so it could be intestinal in nature. You may have to pick up some antibiotics that are effective for infections like e-coli or other diseases. It's a guessing game with chickens sometimes.
Only other thing I can think, could she be eggbound? Does she walk funny, penguin like? If so, that may be it and I would do a search on that. Hopefully, she didn't have an egg burst inside her. That will not end well for her. Infection.

 

[MrsBachbach]

She's fluffed up.her crop is empty and there's no trouble breathing or foul smells at all.

fluffed up sometimes means fever. You can try giving her a half of a baby asprin dose, twice a day. It may make her feel good enough to eat. Cut baby asprin in half, open beak and pop it down there in back of throat. She will swallow it. I would also get a syringe without needle and start putting some liquid to her beak and get her to hydrate. At least four ounces a day, though they should drink more. Usually just put a bit in at a time and they will swallow. Tubing is the best way to do it quickly. You can search tubing a bird here also and there are instructions on how to do it.

 

[TomandBarbara]

Thought it might be coccidiosis we've stated her on treatment for it but she is still not drinking a lot on her own. Have been using medicine syringe to get some fluid down her but she so highly strung it is a struggle however this morning she has been pecking at her food dish (picking out the treats!) She had some live mealworms last night so she can eat but is only for a little while then she goes to sleep in the corner again!
Still this is better than she has been!

 

[appps]

Watermelon is good when they won't drink as well as wetting their pellets with warm water. It seems to make it more appetising and gets some liquid into them too.

 

[TomandBarbara]

Just let penny have a wander in the garden which she seems to be enjoying but have notices a strange noise when she eats the grass.her beak sounds like casternetsclicking..strange I've never heard this before.

 

[MrsBachbach]

Just let penny have a wander in the garden which she seems to be enjoying but have notices a strange noise when she eats the grass.her beak sounds like casternetsclicking..strange I've never heard this before.

Wondering if you are hearing respiratory sounds? If fluid has been getting in lungs when you syringe her? I'm not sure what type of cocci med you have her on, but if she won't drink it (I have a hen that refuses any medicated water), you may have to tube some in her. It would be safer for her if done correctly. Just get some aquarium tubing if you can't find anything else that would work. It doesn't take much line. About 8 to 12 inches. If she struggles too much, pin her wings and wrap a towel snugly around her. Then its just a matter of tucking her under your arm and using that hand to hold her head and beak while tubing her. I use to have my husband help, but can now do it myself. A search on how to crop tube should bring up the how to on this forum.