Acting timid - Not Eating Much

[sbmcqueen]

Hi All - This is our first year of raising chickens. I am not sure whether my chicken is ill, but I thought that could be it, and so I am posting here. Maybe it's bullying though? She is at the bottom of the pecking order right now, so this could be it too. I was hoping someone with more experience could please let me know your thoughts.
I have a chicken that used to be really feisty, and now she is not eating very much at all. She won't take treats from my hand right now(when she used to taken them pretty aggressively!). She will eat though, but only scratch and seeds that I drop near her(and only when I lock the others up). I've tried giving her eggs and black soldier larvae, and she is not very interested. A couple times she tried eating the larvae, and it fell from her beak. I don't know if she wasn't interested or was having trouble with the size of it. She is drinking water.

I think she is pooping right now, but not laying

She is not hanging out with the others often, but not lethargic. She is not as fast or as peppy as normal. She is though puttering around the yard pecking and scratching. She is low on the pecking order though and the others are a little mean to her.

She has had a tough couple of months. Two weeks or so ago she had blood on the right side of her face, and her eye seemed like she had a little bit of an eye infection, but it cleared up. Maybe two months ago(?) she was eggbound, but we were able to help her with a warm bath.

We're been trying to inspect her (she is still fast, feisty, and hard to handle). Vent looked okay. Didn't see any parasites, but will check again.

I am trying to figure out if it is illness, or bullying and how to help the poor sweetie. Any thoughts, please share!

 

[Tookie]

Check her crop early in the morning before she eats or drinks anything and see if it empties.
When was the last time you know she laid an egg?
Is her abdomen bloated at all? (the abdomen is located underneath the vent in between the legs)
Is she molting?

 

[jmendoza]

Is she walking or sitting down? Is her head up, or tucked down? Is she puffed up a bit? All these are signs she is sick and trying to not to let on to avoid the other hens killing her.

The wound around her eyes was from being pecked by your other hens as they detected she was weak/sick. Separate her from the flock is best until she gets strong again.

Smell her breath to see if is foul smelling (pun not intended) as that could be a yeast infection in her crop.
If so, you can try to giver her some water and then gently holder her upside down to see what drains out of her crop. May times this will help, especially if you detected the problem early. If the condition goes untreated, a severe yeast infection of her crop may require medication if you wan to save her.

 

[sbmcqueen]

This is her first fall, so she is not molting. Just for reference, she is 7 months old and a Buckeye.

It has probably been atleast a month since I know she has laid an egg(maybe more). At first I was not sure if this is just fall but maybe she is having trouble..

I will check her abdomen tonight and crop in the morning.

 

[Tookie]

This is her first fall, so she is not molting. Just for reference, she is 7 months old and a Buckeye.

It has probably been atleast a month since I know she has laid an egg(maybe more). At first I was not sure if this is just fall but maybe she is having trouble..

I will check her abdomen tonight and crop in the morning.

Well then, at her age it's very unlikely she has a reproductive disorder.
Any blood in her droppings?

 

[sbmcqueen]

Is she walking or sitting down? Is her head up, or tucked down? Is she puffed up a bit? All these are signs she is sick and trying to not to let on to avoid the other hens killing her.

The wound around her eyes was from being pecked by your other hens as they detected she was weak/sick. Separate her from the flock is best until she gets strong again.

Smell her breath to see if is foul smelling (pun not intended) as that could be a yeast infection in her crop.
If so, you can try to giver her some water and then gently holder her upside down to see what drains out of her crop. May times this will help, especially if you detected the problem early. If the condition goes untreated, a severe yeast infection of her crop may require medication if you wan to save her.

She is mostly walking around. She did notice at times yesterday she puffed up a bit. I will see I will check her crop though and see if I can get her to take in some yogurt or vinegar

 

[sbmcqueen]

Well then, at her age it's very unlikely she has a reproductive disorder.
Any blood in her droppings?

Not that I noticed. I will check though.
Something I didn't mention is she seems to be drinking a lot of water...though I don't know whether that's just me watching her closely.

 

[Tookie]

Not that I noticed. I will check though.
Something I didn't mention is she seems to be drinking a lot of water...though I don't know whether that's just me watching her closely.

Drinking lots of water is often a sign of sour crop.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Please post photos of your pullet and her poop.

 

[sbmcqueen]

Drinking lots of water is often a sign of sour crop.