chicken occasionally unsteady on her feet. 1.5 years old

[mixedchickenguy]

hello. one of our chickens will occasionally (every 20-60 minutes) seem unbalanced on her feet. any other time she acts relatively normal, eating and drinking, but not really preening much and seems a bit lethargic. she also had incredibly watery poops yesterday (basically just pure water with a touch of solids). this has been going on for about two days now, and around a week and a half ago she had the same thing happen for about a day. we've been giving her rooster booster poultry cell water, dumor egg layer pellets, and occasional dried mealworms as treats. she laid an egg today, but didn't lay one yesterday or the day before. she usually lays daily or every other day. she also taps her feet on the ground occasionally.

no signs of mold in the feed, she hasn't come into contact with any wild birds/animals, she's still eating and drinking on her own and is interested in treats. she's separated from the rest of the flock.

i would like to avoid putting her through the stress of driving to an avian vet but we will if that's the only option.

any ideas or recommendations?

 

[azygous]

You've commendably give us pretty thorough information and background but left out the most important - your location and current weather. Extreme heat or cold can produce these symptoms of stumbling and imbalance.

Also, mold isn't the only toxin that can produce these symptoms. Anaerobic bacteria found at the lower layers of compost can produce toxins that can cause these symptoms, too.

 

[mixedchickenguy]

I'm sorry I forgot to mention. she's an indoor chicken so she lives in the house. we keep her space as clean as possible, usually changing out her hay multiple times a week. if it matters, i live in Maine, in the US. it's been very cold (-10 or so fahrenheit) at night and usually getting just to freezing during the warmest part of the day. she hasn't been exposed to this weather at all.

that's good to know about the compost. although she hasn't been exposed to any compost recently either.

You've commendably give us pretty thorough information and background but left out the most important - your location and current weather. Extreme heat or cold can produce these symptoms of stumbling and imbalance.

Also, mold isn't the only toxin that can produce these symptoms. Anaerobic bacteria found at the lower layers of compost can produce toxins that can cause these symptoms, too.

 

[Eggcessive]

She is the age when one starts to molt. So, she laid an egg which they usually gradually stop doing during a molt. Does she have any feather loss or look a little disheveled? Molting can affect their behavior, making them weak, and is a time when we may see illness.

 

[azygous]

Thank you for the additional info. It's helped to rule out those particular causes. Next, look into her ears for signs of infection. Pull back the tiny flaps covering her ear holes and look for crusty secretions and swelling.

What is your water source? Sometimes contamination can cause a chicken to be sick while not affecting the humans.

 

[mixedchickenguy]

She is the age when one starts to molt. So, she laid an egg which they usually gradually stop doing during a molt. Does she have any feather loss or look a little disheveled? Molting can affect their behavior, making them weak, and is a time when we may see illness.

she hasn't shown any signs of molting. sure she'll lose a small feather every couple of weeks but nothing catastrophic. i appreciate your input though.

 

[mixedchickenguy]

Thank you for the additional info. It's helped to rule out those particular causes. Next, look into her ears for signs of infection. Pull back the tiny flaps covering her ear holes and look for crusty secretions and swelling.

What is your water source? Sometimes contamination can cause a chicken to be sick while not affecting the humans.

thank you. her ears look good to me. no swelling, no redness, no crustiness, oozing, or pus.

we're on well water and it's been tested. we have a whole house filter but I can't remember exactly what it targets. we use regular tap water. i believe the well is around 30-35 years old. sorry if I'm missing anything.

 

[mixedchickenguy]

hello. one of our chickens will occasionally (every 20-60 minutes) seem unbalanced on her feet. any other time she acts relatively normal, eating and drinking, but not really preening much and seems a bit lethargic. she also had incredibly watery poops yesterday (basically just pure water with a touch of solids). this has been going on for about two days now, and around a week and a half ago she had the same thing happen for about a day. we've been giving her rooster booster poultry cell water, dumor egg layer pellets, and occasional dried mealworms as treats. she laid an egg today, but didn't lay one yesterday or the day before. she usually lays daily or every other day. she also taps her feet on the ground occasionally.

no signs of mold in the feed, she hasn't come into contact with any wild birds/animals, she's still eating and drinking on her own and is interested in treats. she's separated from the rest of the flock.

i would like to avoid putting her through the stress of driving to an avian vet but we will if that's the only option.

any ideas or recommendations?

update: after giving her two nights on the poultry cell, setting up a humidifier and small, gentle fan, feeding her pellets mixed with water, and giving her lots of love, she seems to be feeling a bit better. she laid another egg today and has been more interested in food than she's been in the past two days.

we're still not sure exactly what caused her to feel so bad, but we're very happy that she's doing better. she's napping on my leg as i type this.

 

[Eggcessive]

So glad to hear that she is doing better. Hopefully, that continues on.