Chicken. With tail down hardly walking

[xthemasterx]

I posted a few days ago that my lady has had her tail down since it got really cold. Yesterday she was fine, but today she barely came out of the coup. She could barely walk and when she did she went in a circle one direction. She seems to have lost weight this week even though she wants like crazy. Even right before bed she came out to visit and eat like crazy. This morning it all changed.

 

[alinas2010]

Hi, sorry to hear about your chicken. And sorry you didn’t get a lot of help before. Can you post some pics of her? Sometimes we can see some things that could help figure out what is wrong.

How old is this hen and is she laying currently? What is her diet? When was her last egg?

Let’s start with some basic checks to rule out possibilities.

How is her crop this morning? It should be completely flat in the morning and full at night when she goes to bed. The crop will empty overnight when everything is functioning properly. If her crop is full still when she wakes up, she may have an impaction.

Mites seem to be very persistent right now with the chilly weather, can you give her a really good once over for mites? Check primarily near her vent in all her butt fluff. A dirty bum and tail down can be a sign of mites or lice and they really can take a toll on chickens when contracted. One of mine contracted mites and struggled a bit more to stay warm in the cold.

Also check her abdomen, right below her vent, sort of between her legs. Is it bulgy at all?

Does she get bullied or kept from food?

Check all her openings - eyes, nose, ears, mouth. Any discharge, lesions or bubbles?

 

[xthemasterx]

Hi, sorry to hear about your chicken. And sorry you didn’t get a lot of help before. Can you post some pics of her? Sometimes we can see some things that could help figure out what is wrong.

How old is this hen and is she laying currently? What is her diet? When was her last egg?

Let’s start with some basic checks to rule out possibilities.

How is her crop this morning? It should be completely flat in the morning and full at night when she goes to bed. The crop will empty overnight when everything is functioning properly. If her crop is full still when she wakes up, she may have an impaction.

Mites seem to be very persistent right now with the chilly weather, can you give her a really good once over for mites? Check primarily near her vent in all her butt fluff. A dirty bum and tail down can be a sign of mites or lice and they really can take a toll on chickens when contracted. One of mine contracted mites and struggled a bit more to stay warm in the cold.

Also check her abdomen, right below her vent, sort of between her legs. Is it bulgy at all?

Does she get bullied or kept from food?

Check all her openings - eyes, nose, ears, mouth. Any discharge, lesions or bubbles?

I'll post a pic when I get home from work.

She is just about 4. Very small bird that seems to have lost weight the last couple days. She has not laid in a while. Only 1 of 6 have laid cuz of winter.

Her crop has been off and on for a month, but it did the same thing last winter. It's been empty each morning for a week. She slobs down food each morning except for today. She even ate like crazy yesterday evening. I can tell she spent time in the coop yesterday because of poop and bedding dried to her feat. She had a dried one on her abdomen this morning too which means she slept on it. She was roosting to set night at dark though.

I looked for mites, but I didn't notice any. I'll have to look more.

No bulge below her vent. That is the 1st thing in check. She use to have some fat below her vent like most chickens that lay, but right now there is nothing.

She is never bullied.

I thought I saw frozen liquid on her beak a couple days ago, but I don't know if it was from breathing moisture.

Thank you.

 

[xthemasterx]

Hi, sorry to hear about your chicken. And sorry you didn’t get a lot of help before. Can you post some pics of her? Sometimes we can see some things that could help figure out what is wrong.

How old is this hen and is she laying currently? What is her diet? When was her last egg?

Let’s start with some basic checks to rule out possibilities.

How is her crop this morning? It should be completely flat in the morning and full at night when she goes to bed. The crop will empty overnight when everything is functioning properly. If her crop is full still when she wakes up, she may have an impaction.

Mites seem to be very persistent right now with the chilly weather, can you give her a really good once over for mites? Check primarily near her vent in all her butt fluff. A dirty bum and tail down can be a sign of mites or lice and they really can take a toll on chickens when contracted. One of mine contracted mites and struggled a bit more to stay warm in the cold.

Also check her abdomen, right below her vent, sort of between her legs. Is it bulgy at all?

Does she get bullied or kept from food?

Check all her openings - eyes, nose, ears, mouth. Any discharge, lesions or bubbles?

 

[alinas2010]

Poor she doesn’t look like she feels well. She is a pretty hen, though.

Yes check her over good again for mites/lice. Be sure to check the other, also. Do a check at night, too when she roosts to be sure it isn’t red fowl mites that only come out at night to feed on chickens.

Has she been de-wormed ever? What do her droppings look like?

 

[xthemasterx]

At the vet right now actually. She will look her over. She was dewormed last spring. Droppings are normal

 

[alinas2010]

At the vet right now actually. She will look her over. She was dewormed last spring. Droppings are normal

I’m glad you have vet care as an option, that is wonderful. Keep us updated