Chicken losing neck feathers.

[thinkyesi]

Hi, i had a hen die a couple weeks ago from i dont know what, she was very sick, weak, bad diareah sticking to her bottom, her legs would go stiff and she would just lay on the ground, no feathers on her neck, and she was losing alot of balance! I tried giving her corrid for 3 days, but on the 3rd day i found her dead. I never figured out what was wrong with her. Anyways, today i noticed one of my rhode island reds start to lose feathers on her chest/neck area just like my sexlink that passed, and she isnt eating as much, she just kinda sticks to herself. And her poo is starting to stick to her bottomfeathers a little now. What could this be? Ive heard people say lice or mites, and others say it could be cocci, or some other disease. Please help me. I dont wanna lose another hen, they are my babies.

 

[Eggcessive]

It is always helpful when you lose a chicken to an unknown illness, to get a necropsy by your state vet or poultry lab, to get a diagnosis. Feather loss around the neck is very common, in my experience due to feather picking by others. Your hen in the picture looks to have a swollen ankle. Does she have any limping? Did the other hen that died have any swelling in her joints? Mycoplasma synoviae (MS) a bacterial disease of the joints, and can cause swollen joints. She also could have an injury. How old was th hen that died, and was she vaccinated for Mareks disease?

 

[thinkyesi]

How can you tell there is swelling? She doesnt have any limping, neither did the other chicken. I didnt have them from a young age, someone had given them to me, they are only a couple years old so idk if they got vaccinated or not.

 

[Eggcessive]

In your picture, her right ankle looks enlarged.