Hey everyone, I have a 2 year old Easter Egger hen who is acting off but shows no obvious signs of a specific condition, and I'm a bit stumped on what to do. A few weeks ago I noticed her crop was not draining. I brought her inside and gave her the typical oil treatment, which seemed to work fairly quickly, like within two days. Her crop was subsequently empty in the morning for a few days in a row, so I put her back outside. I checked her diligently once outside and she didn't seem to have any additional crop issues, so I thought the case was closed.
Earlier this week I noticed she was acting sluggish and not very interested in food. Once again, I brought her inside so I could get some vitamins in her and monitor her eating and pooping. She seemed low energy (normally I think she'd protest being locked up harder), but wasn't miserable looking like I've had with previous cases of sick chickens. She was eating, but not with much vigor or interest. She pooped only about half as much as I would've expected throughout the day, but what she did pass was totally normal looking; no diarrhea or signs of worms (though I haven't had her poop tested). No obvious signs of mites or lice. Her crop was draining normally and her abdomen doesn't seem swollen at all. She doesn't have any sinus symptoms either - no sneezing, no draining nose, etc.
Finding nothing obvious wrong and worried she might be depressed, I put her back outside. But she continues to seem off. When checking on her, I've caught her hunched up, head pulled in, and tail down. Her crop in the evening hasn't been very full, so I don't think she's eating very much and her interest in treats is hit or miss. My chickens free range and they tend to come back to roost at night with very full crops, so this is a pretty stark difference. I know penguin stance can be an indicator of egg binding, but I've dealt with that before and she doesn't show any signs of straining or camping out in the nesting box. Plus she is pooping, if not as much as usual. She also looks very healthy - her comb is bright red and she molted pretty extensively this fall so her feathers are soft and shiny. She started laying again following the molt about a month ago or so, but stopped when she started having the crop issues and hasn't laid since.
She wasn't like this prior to the crop issues. I'm worried that by bringing her inside during that time, I messed up her social dynamic with her flock and now she's depressed. I haven't seen any aggressive bullying since reintroducing her, other than some non-violent pecking order establishing. They don't seem to shun her or anything either. But I'd hate to bring her inside if it's just going to stress her out. She is the only chicken acting this way too.
So thanks to all of that, I'm at a loss of what to do. Do I bring her back inside even though I'm not sure what I can do for her? I don't generally like precautionary treating, but do I try an antibiotic or dewormer to see if it helps? Maybe give her some sort of supplement? If anyone has any thoughts on things to try or what to check for, I'd love to hear them.
Earlier this week I noticed she was acting sluggish and not very interested in food. Once again, I brought her inside so I could get some vitamins in her and monitor her eating and pooping. She seemed low energy (normally I think she'd protest being locked up harder), but wasn't miserable looking like I've had with previous cases of sick chickens. She was eating, but not with much vigor or interest. She pooped only about half as much as I would've expected throughout the day, but what she did pass was totally normal looking; no diarrhea or signs of worms (though I haven't had her poop tested). No obvious signs of mites or lice. Her crop was draining normally and her abdomen doesn't seem swollen at all. She doesn't have any sinus symptoms either - no sneezing, no draining nose, etc.
Finding nothing obvious wrong and worried she might be depressed, I put her back outside. But she continues to seem off. When checking on her, I've caught her hunched up, head pulled in, and tail down. Her crop in the evening hasn't been very full, so I don't think she's eating very much and her interest in treats is hit or miss. My chickens free range and they tend to come back to roost at night with very full crops, so this is a pretty stark difference. I know penguin stance can be an indicator of egg binding, but I've dealt with that before and she doesn't show any signs of straining or camping out in the nesting box. Plus she is pooping, if not as much as usual. She also looks very healthy - her comb is bright red and she molted pretty extensively this fall so her feathers are soft and shiny. She started laying again following the molt about a month ago or so, but stopped when she started having the crop issues and hasn't laid since.
She wasn't like this prior to the crop issues. I'm worried that by bringing her inside during that time, I messed up her social dynamic with her flock and now she's depressed. I haven't seen any aggressive bullying since reintroducing her, other than some non-violent pecking order establishing. They don't seem to shun her or anything either. But I'd hate to bring her inside if it's just going to stress her out. She is the only chicken acting this way too.
So thanks to all of that, I'm at a loss of what to do. Do I bring her back inside even though I'm not sure what I can do for her? I don't generally like precautionary treating, but do I try an antibiotic or dewormer to see if it helps? Maybe give her some sort of supplement? If anyone has any thoughts on things to try or what to check for, I'd love to hear them.
