Antibiotics cause severe diarrhea in hen?

[Judy]

Here is an article about clostridial enteritis in chickens, also called necrotic enteritis. You will find several other articles if you google "clostridial enteritis in chickens." One of them indicated that the drug yours was prescribed is one treatment choice, but there are others, including penicillin and sulfa drugs. In people a clostridium infection known as clostridium dificile, which results from having received a lot of antibiotics, is usually treated with metronidazole.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/101/necrotic-enteritis

I did read, as mentioned, that clostridial enteritis is difficult to diagnose, and I doubt this vet did the necessary tests, esp. if she made the diagnosis on the day she first saw the chicken. One article even said that animals are often treated for this presumptively, meaning without a test to prove the diagnosis is correct.

The articles also say probiotics can be an effective treatment, and as mentioned above, broodiness in itself can be lethal, so I have to agree that a wire cage and probiotics need to be part of whatever you do.

 

[chickbliss7]

I forgot to say that there were no parasites noted in her poop at the vet's, and I don't know if they checked for e. coli. But, wouldn't the other chickens be sick too? As for being broody, I actually did bring her inside and put her in my bathroom for 4 days. She tried to make a "nest" in the sink! Nothing but newspapers and diaper rags on the floor. I think she just feels bad, thus, she wants to go to "bed" like any of us would if we were sick. She's always fluffed up, especially when the other chickens approach her.

I gave her yogurt with live cultures, but she's not very interested in eating much. I haven't gotten the apple cider vinegar because I read it has to be unfiltered and my local store doesn't stock it (I live in the boonies), so will have to drive to find it. She'll eat some scratch and a few mealworms, but not interested at all in her regular feed. She ate a bit of grated Monterey Jack that I hand-fed her.

I don't think I trust the vet, but there aren't any others in the area who claim any expertise. You would think with all the interest in chickens these days, the vet schools would be training students in this category!

 

[silkiechicken]

Well... since chickens are omnivores... if a mouse made it into your coop, they very well could have dined down and swallowed it whole. They are known to eat small snakes, frogs, and other replitles too if they can catch them. There are lots of ways to raise chickens, and I personally thin the healthiest ones do have animal protein in their diets. In your case, meal worms would be that animal protein.

Raising them isn't really that hard. Just some bad luck with one hen. Good luck. Your birds are obviously pets, but in a more flock health perspective, if she needs to be on antibiotics for long term and health continues to decline, it only takes one weak link to cause the chain to break.

 

[chickbliss7]

Thank you all for your advice. I am going to drive some 50 miles today to stock up on some natural remedies that were suggested to me: probiotics, selenium, apple cider vinegar, etc. If I can get her to eat, I'll keep offering it to her. I'll switch to bottled water for a time since our water comes from a well, and I want to eliminate anything she might have picked up. The other girls must have been equally exposed to these things, but perhaps they have better immune systems. I'll keep you posted. My vet and chicken helper are not going to be happy with me, but I feel more comfortable trying a natural solution. Wish me luck!

 

[purpletree23]

Please get rid of that vet. Dental surgery for 18 year old cat??? Necrotic enteritis is basically a disease of broilers. They have blood stained feces (I don't think you mentioned blood) and the feces have a very foul odor. I think your little girl just has a bad case of tummy ache made worse by antibiotics. She isn't broodie. She is tired and doesn't feel well and she feels safest in a closed in dark area.

Stop all the nonsense and get back to basics. Keep her separate from the other birds so she can rest without being bothered. Give her water mixed with Pedialyte to keep her hydrated. Give her scrambled egg sprinkled with a 1/2 probiotic table crushed and sprinkled on top. Feed free choice of crumbles or pellets with chick grit mixed in. Repeat the egg and probiotic tablet once a day and give the poor girl time to adjust. Put yourself in her shoes. Let us know how she does.

 

[chickbliss7]

Thank you--my gut (no pun intended) feeling is that she doesn't need to be hit with a nuclear bomb in the form of antibiotics. I'm headed to Whole Foods now to get some of your suggestions and I'll continue to offer her little bits every so often. The only thing she eats with relish is meal worms! I figure it's better than nothing. The other girls are basically ignoring her and going about their business. Once in a while, she'll charge one of them, but they easily get away. Fortunately, she's not aggressive to me and lets me pick her up out of the nest box, pet her, etc. Will keep everyone posted.

 

[lblasch]

I am not a doctor or vet, however, I have many animals and have to take care of them due to costs. Metrodiazinole is an anti fungal medicine and is also given to dogs when they have parvo. It could be that the vet is treating cocci, as it is also used for that in the canine world. Keep her warm and seperate from others with plenty of fluids near by as you don't want her to dehydrate.

 

[chickbliss7]

I came home with probiotics, ACV, selenium and vitamin E. AND 1500 meal worms. The worms are the only food she would eat. I tried to get her to have some yogurt and cottage cheese (with live cultures), also some apple sauce, but she refused it all. She took a little water and a few shreds of Jack cheese, but that's it. Over the next few days, I'll try to go out and keep offering her food and water.

Can you feed chickens too many meal worms? I usually just give them out for a treat once a week, but my feeling is if this is what she wants, I should just give it to her. At least her diarrhea has stopped. The other girls, of course, want the worms too and always end up eating all her snacks. I hope these supplements are okay to give healthy hens.

I can't separate them because I only, so far, have one run and one coop. Nettie, the sick one, hasn't spread it to the others, and I think I would have seen illness after several weeks of this. I keep the poop picked up every day so their living quarters are pretty clean. I scrub the roosts and floor boards and empty and refill "her" nest box every day. This is a lot of work!