Chicken Health

[BillyJ1624]

I have been having issues with my chickens living past 6-9 months. I have 3 chickens now that are approximately 5 months old and seem very healthy. My concern is one of thems breast feels non existent compared to the other two. I noticed this on one of my other chickens that died shortly after. Maybe this chicken is fine but if you have any thoughts or answers why this may be happening I would greatly appreciate it.

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi and welcome to BYC. I hope that the ER can shed some light on the issue.

Good luck
Pork Pie

 

[N F C]

What breed of chickens do you have? Have you weighed your birds to see what their weights are?

Since you're concerned, I'll move your post over to the ER forum...be sure to give all the details you can to them.

Best of luck!

 

[BillyJ1624]

What breed of chickens do you have? Have you weighed your birds to see what their weights are?

Since you're concerned, I'll move your post over to the ER forum...be sure to give all the details you can to them.

Best of luck!

Thanks

 

[BillyJ1624]

not 100%, Its the yellow one, i will upload a pic

 

[Meg-in-MT]

Hello! Welcome to BYC!!

I'm sorry about your girl. Has she lost weight or just not fully developed yet? Is she acting out of character? Eating/drinking/pooping okay?

Feel free to check out the links below for some interesting reading. Good luck to you!

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your chickens having such a short life. Can you give a few details about how you raise them, where they are kept, and what type of food they eat? Where did the chickens all come from—a hatchery, feed store, breeder, ot other? There are some diseases such as coccidiosis that can affect them at a young age, respiratory diseases, as well as Mareks disease, a virus that causes lameness, tumors, and decreased immunity. The more details that you can give about the sick hen, the better.

 

[BillyJ1624]

Sorry about your chickens having such a short life. Can you give a few details about how you raise them, where they are kept, and what type of food they eat? Where did the chickens all come from—a hatchery, feed store, breeder, ot other? There are some diseases such as coccidiosis that can affect them at a young age, respiratory diseases, as well as Mareks disease, a virus that causes lameness, tumors, and decreased immunity. The more details that you can give about the sick hen, the better.

We live in south florida , bought them at a feed store, but my prior chickens were from a breeder i guess. we feed the scratch and dried worms every other day. We feed the layer pellets every day(stays in their feed bowl) I give the apple cider vinegar in their water. We let them roam every day for a couple hours minimum.

 

[BillyJ1624]

We live in south florida , bought them at a feed store, but my prior chickens were from a breeder i guess. we feed the scratch and dried worms every other day. We feed the layer pellets every day(stays in their feed bowl) I give the apple cider vinegar in their water. We let them roam every day for a couple hours minimum.

my other chickens that I got from the breeder all died, One I found in the coop the other was still alive but laying upside down. And then the last one which was kind of like a silky, feathers on her feet. Found her same way upside down. when I picked her up she just convulsed and then started doing back flips and died. I thought she may have been egg bound but dont know, When she died a bunch of fluid came out of her mouth.

Im hoping they didnt have a disease bc she may have spread it to the new chickens.

 

[Eggcessive]

The first chickens could have had Mareks disease, which stays in your environment for month to years and can affect others. A necropsy done by the state vet is the best way to get a diagnosis, if you lose any others. I would get some Flock Raiser feed from Tractor Supply, along with a bag of crushed oyster shell. Remove the scratch and you can leave out the layer feed if you wish. Do not give any scratch or treats for a few weeks. They will eventually eat the new feed. Scratch has half of the protein and none of the nutrients that chickens require for good health and laying eggs. It should only be given in very tiny amounts, or not at all. They will prefer it to their feed any time. To get them eating the layer or new feed, mix a little in a pan of water. Here is a link to finding your state vet or poultry lab to get a necropsy if you lose any more:
http://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm