Bantam pullet not drinking, barely eating...

[LightningBug]

Hi! Thanks to any who take the time to read this and try to help!
I have 3 Serama pullets, about 8 months old, that I got in August. The chicken in question, "Broody Mama", is the biggest, tipping the scales at just about a pound. She can see/hear but not touch the others due to previous bullying issues, so I know how much she herself is eating/drinking. They are in our walk-out basement, I am somewhat abashed to say, because the winter seems way too cold for bantams this small. TSC flake bedding, 16% layer pellets, grit, the usual.
They managed to get roundworms in October, and since I couldn't buy a wormer anywhere, went to the vet for a course of Panacur. No signs of worms since (and actually, they showed no ill effects even when they had them.)

OK, the problem:
I noticed a couple of days ago she seemed to be drinking less water than normal. Friday I noticed that the water level had not fallen at all from the previous 24 hours. Usually they will run over to drink from the cup drinker when I visit and dispense water for them, but she only drank a couple of sips. I was concerned, so gave her a little oatmeal porridge and cucumber, which she ate.
Same story this morning - not one millimeter of water gone, and only drank a couple of sips even though I made sure it was cold and fresh again. She had not eaten any layer pellets either, as far as I can tell.
She did then eat a small chunk of watermelon and a tablespoon or so of grits/oatmeal/dried fish gruel. (Not things I feed often, but I'm trying to hydrate!)
I can't think of any changes recently, except they began getting a small amount of pea tendrils and sunflower shoots I grew for them... but they get small amounts of green leafies almost daily either way, clover, kale etc.

Sorry if this sounds like overreaction, but I've heard that things can go terribly wrong quickly with birds, so I wanted to ask.
She still seems pretty normal and active; although pooping much less than usual, poop doesn't look strange. She stopped laying 7-10 days ago, but started molting shortly after, so that seems reasonable. Lots of feathers shed, but definitely no bare patches at all. But surely she needs the protein and nutrients more than ever?

Can you think of any reason she would stop eating and drinking normally?
At her current intake, starvation or dehydration seem imminent... Of course it's the weekend, so the only option would be an incredibly expensive vet hospital emergency visit.

Any advice from you veterans out there would be much appreciated! These tiny chickens are such characters, I can't stand to think of losing her!

 

[Keeperofmunchkins]

Have you checked her crop for sour or impacted crop?

If she seems to be acting normally and her comb is full and red, plus her poop is OK, I would not worry too much. This does not seem life threatening, at least not in the immediate future. A starving chicken will often have green watery poop. Also if you feel her breastbone you can tell if she is underweight or not. As long as she is producing poop with brown solids and white urates she is getting some nutrition and hydration at least.

She definitely isn't broody is she?

 

[Keeperofmunchkins]

Forgot to say that I would try to moisten the layer pellets for her in warm water to make a mash. Most chickens much prefer it that way and it helps to boost water intake.

 

[LightningBug]

Thanks for the reply, keeperofmunchkins! Her comb is a normal light red color, and I'd be very surprised if she were broody.
Each of these gals, as they matured, laid eggs for about 6 weeks, then turned into determined broodies for about a month, with all the classic symptoms... except they did keep themselves fed.. and then went back to laying.

But this time she isn't sitting down at all, just not eating/drinking. I'm always kind of mystified by the crop, but it seems ok... it was pretty empty early this morning, now has a little in it. Not swollen plump like they often get.

She was in good body condition, so she could probably fast for a few days I guess... it's more the lack of fluids that worry me. And if it might signal an underlying condition?

I will keep trying the oatmeal/pellet wet mash for the time being. If anyone has any guesses what might be wrong, let me know. Thanks again!

 

[Keeperofmunchkins]

I don't really know of any reason why she might stop drinking while appearing to be otherwise OK. Once chickens stop eating and drinking they are usually already quite ill and have other symptoms. One possibility is something wrong with her mouth/throat. Try to have a peek inside her beak if you can see anything unusual like fungus, sores, something stuck in there etc.

You said she is moulting so I am betting she is just suffering from that and feeling a bit sorry for herself. One of my hens just went through her first serious moult and my goodness did she mope about it. She would just stand around in the coop for hours day after day. I thought she was ill but she ate OK and her poop was normal... So I realised she was just having a hard time with the moult. It took a few weeks but eventually she got her energy back.

As long as you are seeing some normal looking poop and this doesn't carry on for longer than a few weeks, I think your girl will be fine.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you post some photos of her poop?
Is the photo you posted of her current? (like in the last day or so)

If she is acting normal...she's molting...she probably doesn't feel the greatest.
It doesn't seem to make a lot of sense, but I've noticed molting birds do not seem to eat like they normally do.

Making a wet mash to entice her would be good. You can also offer her a higher protein feed (chick starter/flock raiser) or give extra protein treats like egg, meat, tuna.
You can also give her a direct dose of vitamins for a couple of days to give her a boost - Poultry Cell or Poultry Nutri-Drench would be good - 1cc per 3lbs of weight.

Even though the weather is cold, you may want to take them outdoors on warmer days so they can have some sunshine and fresh air.

 

[LightningBug]

Thanks for the replies, folks!
The last couple of days, I was dealing with another pet medical issue, as well as having a hopefully-not-broken toe myself. Sheesh!

We are still kind of in a holding pattern with this. She will eat some wet pellets or oat/corn/fish porridge, but not the amount of food that would be normal. And still drinking essentially zero water, although some minor intake from juicy vegetables. She's still acting pretty normal also. So it doesn't seem like an emergency, but I'm not sure how this will be resolved.

I could try buying a small bag of a different food. But it's really the water intake I'm worried about. Why would an animal suddenly refuse to drink water?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thanks for the replies, folks!
The last couple of days, I was dealing with another pet medical issue, as well as having a hopefully-not-broken toe myself. Sheesh!

We are still kind of in a holding pattern with this. She will eat some wet pellets or oat/corn/fish porridge, but not the amount of food that would be normal. And still drinking essentially zero water, although some minor intake from juicy vegetables. She's still acting pretty normal also. So it doesn't seem like an emergency, but I'm not sure how this will be resolved.

I could try buying a small bag of a different food. But it's really the water intake I'm worried about. Why would an animal suddenly refuse to drink water?

O.k. do you have her inside where you are watching her all the time? How do you know she is not drinking water?

 

[LightningBug]

O.k. do you have her inside where you are watching her all the time? How do you know she is not drinking water?

As previously mentioned, only she has access to this waterer, which has marks on the side... and the level of water stays exactly the same... alas!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

If she is eating wet feed, that may be providing her with enough fluids.