Chicken didn't want to leave coop this morning, seems weak.

[James_Lucier]

We have two hens,one of them is a Sussex hen a year old, who has been eating well and laying eggs with no problems.

This morning she didn't follow her friend out into the yard, which is where they run to and poop as soon as I open up.
She sat at the door and looks weak and confused. She just lay on the coop floor.

I thought she was having trouble with an egg, so I tried a remedy suggested here months back, which worked for her friend -vaseline.

But when I looked, she had a lot of feces stuck to her underside, all in a knot - so I took her inside for a wash, and noticed that she is all soft on the gut - feels and looks swollen.
(between the legs and the cloaca). I don't even know if this is normally a soft area, but after it was wet, it was bald and felt and looked bulgy.

I set her in the yard and put out their veggies - She did not rush to her bowl as usual, she seems to have no appetite - this is one of her favourite meals, mornings she gets the same meal as our parrots - chopped veggies and some warmed froz. mixed vegetables - so pretty much 6 or 7 kinds of veggies.

She also eats Oyster shell and Layena during the day. Before bed she gets two teaspoons of yoghurt.
My wifes says maybe we should have a bird feeder in the yard, as she may have ingested too much seed... ?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[coloradochick]

Hi James,
I've got a Cochin hen that's doing the same thing except for no poopy underside . I'm just keeping an eye on her making sure she eats/drinks. She won't come out of the pen and free range with her sisters. Droopy tailed.

I hope your girl gets better.

 

[flashywings]

Hi, I am James' wife, Heather. Gracie wasn't doing very well; she was lying down on her stomach with her eyes closed. James found a local vet who will see Gracie and they are there right now. But after searching this forum I suspect Gracie has egg yolk peritonitis.

 

[flashywings]

Quote:
Thank you for your thoughts. I hope she gets better, too. We only have two hens (Patty and Gracie) and I am worried about her friend if anything happens to her. James is at the vet with Gracie right now.

 

[James_Lucier]

So -75 miles and $365 later, I get to wait and see, give her another EDTA shot tonight - then when/if she is strong enough, and take her back tomorrow morning, and set up a surgery...
She has two problems:

1. A massive egg seems to be stuck in the channel, the vet could just feel it. He will take care of this tomorrow morning if she makes it till then.

2. Two, an x-ray shows a large piece of METAL in her gizzard , U-shaped. It's so big I'm amazed she injested it. It may be a piece of an old wire tie from our grape vines.

She needed a special shot for that (she got several shots - calcium, vitamins, fluids - and calcium EDTA to help her failing kidney by bonding wth and binding the dissolving metal in her bloodstream.
If she makes it through the day, she should be strong enough for surgery later.

She's looking better, on her feet again and with her friend on the lawn..

 

[flashywings]

An update: she laid the egg same day (whew) and has been steadily improving since. We brought her back to vet on Saturday and she was much more alert and enjoyed the ride in the car. We are giving her calcium EDTA shots twice a day through tomorrow then she'll go back for another x-ray to determine what's happened to the piece of metal. We are keeping our fingers crossed that she will pass it on her own.

Yesterday she was running around scratching in the dirt and acting as if nothing was wrong. I was really amazed by her recovery. I thought she was a goner on Friday and any time one of my parrots has looked like that it's been game over.

 

[silkieroo]

Now your a dedicated chicken owner!!

Glad shes feeling better!!

 

[coloradochick]

Woo Hoo!! Sounds like things are looking up for little Gracie

That's the true love of a chicken parent if you ask me

 

[James_Lucier]

Grascie is behaving normally and seems happy.

She gets two shots for the metal in her blood each day, and two .5 cc beakfulls of antibiotics.
The vet will decide when to operate to remove the metal if it is still stuck in her gizzard Wednesday.
Meantime, we are over-feeding her to try and force the metal to flush out.
Another $350 gone.. surgery estimate is between $650 - $750...

We need to get another birdie stock-fund going .
I used to use stocks successfully to pay for such things, but stopped doing it when we were flush (before the big fall )- now here we are needing it again...
That was a good idea I should have kept...

 

[James_Lucier]

In surgery, the vet tore up her insides trying to get at a piece of metal that was poisoning her.

It’s a U-shaped stainless steel thing, looks like a ‘keeper’ from a motorcycle part or something like that…

Pattie (now alone) was calling for her until I looked at her and shook my head a few times while saying 'Gracie', then I sat on the ground and looked down.

She responded by ceasing the calls, walked to the grass, and sat down, head down, with her eyes closed for about 20 or 30 minutes.

Tell me again that animals don’t feel…

R.I.P. Gracie. We're gonna miss her gentle manners and warm personality.