Can a chicken be in a coma?

[Toetwo]

@Toetwo

Whilst lice and mites can be a problem they are rarely life threatening. Usually they are an indication that a chicken is sick with some other illness and unable to take care of herself properly like dust bathing and preening. Very occasionally a broody hen will get overwhelmed with mites because she is sitting still in the coop for so long but a healthy chicken should be able to keep infestations at a low-moderate level naturally. How old is your chicken and what have been her symptoms apart from the mites.... and are they mites or lice? Mites are red and suck blood, lice are brown/tan coloured and live off the skin/feather debris and are more of an irritant.

 

[Toetwo]

I'd give her an epsom salt bath but I have already traumatized her. Likely as not, I'm the reason she is dying.

As to was she a healthy hen? The following is the long version of the short answer which is "I don't know if she was healthy." Brownie (the currently dying/sick hen) was adopted in 2014 and had two sisters, Clownie and Downie, both of whom died last year, one of confirmed cancer, one out of nowhere. She just up and died. All three are golden-buff red sex-linked. Note: All my girls are on organic feed. Free range. Get healthy treats. Having already lost three other chickens to cancer over the course of my 5 years of chicken stewarding, I was and am at a loss. But I digress.

Back to Brownie. Last year, a bit before her sisters went the way, she lost all her underneath feathers. Not a molt. She just walked around with a bright red belly and no feathers under her. An occasional down day but, as soon as I approached, up she'd jump to chase a grasshopper. I was worried about her featherlessness as winter approached and so, when I took another hen, Peaches (cream leg bar) who is a whole other story in to the vet, I took Brownie, too. He took a scraping of Brownie's tummy and it came back with a vitamin A deficiency. The vet thought that the cancer was a result of the same. I had to put Peaches down that day--cancer. And two days later, had to put Clownie down. Cancer. Not a good week.

Brownie eventually grew her feathers back to fluff and order and continued to lay her quirky eggs. (Huge. Oblong.) Until a week ago, when she started sitting all huddled and uncomfortable looking. After a few days, she looked ready to die so (fool that I am) I put her in a box, all cozy with hay, and brought her into the house for overnight so she'd be warm. The next morning, I went to check on her, the box was covered with bugs. The vet confirmed northern mites.

Needless to say, the box and chicken were whisked outside. After vacuuming the house in a panic of mite infestation, I spent the rest of the day cleaning the coop, and looking up natural mite deterrent/destruction. I live off grid on a farm with a just built pond and so the insecticide I naively bought -- that says on the label is death and destruction to frogs and such--got returned in favor of less awful stuff.)

I bathed Brownie in orange oil and water. I sprayed the coop with neem oil and the orange oil stuff. I spread Diatametous earth everywhere (and breathed it in but at that point I was trying to save my chicken.) Gave Brownie a dust bath in DE and wood ash. That she didn't seem to like as much as the warm bath. Then I spent an hour preening her with a hair dryer drying her. She seemed to like the warmth.

Yesterday, I recleaned the coop, gave her another dust bath--that I think brought her to her edge. I then read about garlic spray. It kills mites within 24 hours!? Had I only known. I made that but by then Brownie was where she is now: at death's door. Worse, she had a bloodied comb. So back into a new box to keep her separated from her sisters and roo. I feel awful as I think I killed her through the trauma of trying to save her. I'm ready to toss in the towel with chickens. And still I hope she returns to her perky self somehow. And I look at her sisters. And know I'll keep them. But what to do? She's suffering yet overtime I try to help, I only make matters worse.

Sorry for going on so long. Maybe, as Rebrascora said, she was already a sick chicken and the mites took her over the edge, not my tender loving care. . . . :-(

 

[rebrascora]

I'm so sorry to read of all your chicken woes. I can understand you feeling overwhelmed and frustrated, especially when you are trying so hard to do right by them. It sounds to me like you have a virus like Lymphoid Leucosis or Marek's in your flock to be losing so many to cancer. Both cause tumours. I have Marek's in my flock and it can be really heart breaking to lose them when you try so hard to keep them alive. I also understand what you mean about causing them suffering in trying to make them well. I had one a few years ago die as I was trying to rid her of lice and I felt so horribly guilty that her final moments were stressful and may have contributed to her demise. Her health was already severely compromised with something else and the lice had just overrun her poor girl, but the stress of me dusting her was the final straw for her system. It is not easy to find the balance of when to treat and when to euthanize, so I cannot really help you other than to say that I greatly sympathise with your situation, as I have been there. It is a slow and sad learning process sometimes, but there are many wonderful chicken experiences which are sometimes hard to recall in these moments of despair. Hopefully this cloud will soon pass and there will be some happy event which reminds you of the pleasure of keeping chickens again.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Mites will definitely undermine the health of your birds. Once an infestation takes hold birds suffer and can become anemic. Production slows and in some cases ceases completely. Wild birds and rodents bring them into your flock and as they are blood suckers they are quite capable of carrying disease.

 

[Toetwo]

@Toetwo

Whilst lice and mites can be a problem they are rarely life threatening. Usually they are an indication that a chicken is sick with some other illness and unable to take care of herself properly like dust bathing and preening. Very occasionally a broody hen will get overwhelmed with mites because she is sitting still in the coop for so long but a healthy chicken should be able to keep infestations at a low-moderate level naturally. How old is your chicken and what have been her symptoms apart from the mites.... and are they mites or lice? Mites are red and suck blood, lice are brown/tan coloured and live off the skin/feather debris and are more of an irritant.

I'm so sorry to read of all your chicken woes. I can understand you feeling overwhelmed and frustrated, especially when you are trying so hard to do right by them. It sounds to me like you have a virus like Lymphoid Leucosis or Marek's in your flock to be losing so many to cancer. Both cause tumours. I have Marek's in my flock and it can be really heart breaking to lose them when you try so hard to keep them alive. I also understand what you mean about causing them suffering in trying to make them well. I had one a few years ago die as I was trying to rid her of lice and I felt so horribly guilty that her final moments were stressful and may have contributed to her demise. Her health was already severely compromised with something else and the lice had just overrun her poor girl, but the stress of me dusting her was the final straw for her system. It is not easy to find the balance of when to treat and when to euthanize, so I cannot really help you other than to say that I greatly sympathise with your situation, as I have been there. It is a slow and sad learning process sometimes, but there are many wonderful chicken experiences which are sometimes hard to recall in these moments of despair. Hopefully this cloud will soon pass and there will be some happy event which reminds you of the pleasure of keeping chickens again.

Thank you. Interesting about Marek and Lymphoid Leucosis. All my chickens have been vaccinated for former. We ended up having to euthanize Brownie. (Aka my husband did.) Makes me sick to think about it. I feel as if there should have been something I could/should have done. And have neem oil, garlic, ACV, Poultry Protector, Nu-Stock and DE all lined up for the rest of time to protect the rest of them! Some day I also hope to come to Backyard chickens just to check in rather than in too-late panic of how to save a chicken.

 

[Toetwo]

Mites will definitely undermine the health of your birds. Once an infestation takes hold birds suffer and can become anemic. Production slows and in some cases ceases completely. Wild birds and rodents bring them into your flock and as they are blood suckers they are quite capable of carrying disease.

Yeah, we have some very happy fat mice living next to our current run situation. Not sure how to be rid of them. I'm going to spend the next day or lifetime bolstering my girls with AVC and garlic. I hope to stem this but only time will tell.

 

[rebrascora]

I'm so sorry you lost Brownie too.

 

[micstrachan]

So sorry for all your losses. It sounds like you are doing a good job with your flock and have had some bad luck. Hang in there.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Yeah, we have some very happy fat mice living next to our current run situation. Not sure how to be rid of them. I'm going to spend the next day or lifetime bolstering my girls with AVC and garlic. I hope to stem this but only time will tell.

Mites are definitely life threatening and also very difficult to get rid of. They spend their days in the coop and feed on your birds whilst they roost. In order to eliminate them you need to get rid of the bedding spray the coop out entirely with a pyrethrum based product and powder or spray the birds with a pyrethrum or permethrin product too. This treatment has to be repeated on a weekly basis or until you find no mites on your nighty spot inspection . Garlic and DE are often claimed to be preventative but they will not treat an infestation and these thing breed by the thousands . Elector /Spinosad is very effective and available in the UK and USA.
http://www.mapress.com/zoosymposia/content/2011/v6/f/v006p282-287.pdf

 

[Toetwo]

Just wanted to check in as two of my hens are now sick. The good news is no sign of mites! But Chickadee has been sick, (now I look back on it) for a while. Since before Brownie got sick. I fear cancer again? She's lost weight and has a dirty bum. Usually "normal" poo but on occasion brighter green. And just sitting there, not seeming to be interested in food. Though I caught her eating an egg the other day. Then Ping, my favorite. She's been on again, off again, keeping Chickadee company. I half think she is trying to keep away from Schtude, our resident rooster, who is becoming more and more aggressive with all the hens (and me. He nailed by head/face the other day while I was bathing these two girls to clean their dirty butts. He is about 13 months old.) But this morning I went out to the coop and Ping has a weird breathing thing going on. But she's on the roost so she must have some degree of energy? And she was quite interested (as always) in the food, yogurt and mealy worms I put in the coop a couple of days ago when trying to engage the two sick hens, and both were out yesterday. Have tried giving them super vitamins in water but never see any of the hens drinking from the waterer. Chickadee is outside today but just standing there with her tail down, as she has been for what seems like weeks. I called vet but he never called back. I just feel I am watching these two girls die and not sure what to do or if they are suffering. They are both 6 years old. I am contemplating just rehoming all the chickens. I am sick at heart and don't know what to do.