Chickens staying sick - I've tried almost everything - please help!

[sashanellie]

Hi everyone, here's the deal...and I really do appreciate anyone's time who responds, I know we're all busy.

I have 3 older hens, 2 young hens, 3 guinea hens, and 3 guinea cocks. They all live together in one coop, and are free range during the day. The introduction last fall of the babies to the older girls went great, and they have been great all fall and winter.

Late into the winter, one older hen started to look sick and isolated herself. Ruffled feathers, hunched, stayed in corner or faced wall, and had a wet neck all the time and diarrhea. Tried apple cider vinegar in water and yogurt. No change.

Then this spring it got even worse with the diarrhea, and listlessness, but she was still eating and drinking. Tried warm bath, feeling for egg bound, cleaned off hard matted diarrhea bottom, no change.

Then, another older hen started with the same symptoms.Tried turning her upside down, feeling for sour crop, nothing. Lastly, a few weeks later, a younger hen who has been starting to go broody has the same thing. Ruffled, hunched, white sticking to bottom, feathers on back rounded, oh, and the hens have LOTS of fluff, tiny white feathers, everywhere.Tried CORID after calling a vet. Locked them all in the coop and small run, no change.

Now, I am worried it's not only staying around but more hens - even the guinea hens, are getting that hunched look. I am not a medication person, I've been giving yogurt, apple cider vinegar, we stopped eating the eggs with the CORID, and now the vet said to try a broad spectrum antibiotic. I have no idea what's wrong with them. So, today, I started the antibiotic, but I am so unsure. Now we can't eat their eggs for even longer.

Also, they are laying, and one of them seems to be eating the eggs, because there is always a mess in the PILE OF GUINEA HEN EGGS and CHICKEN EGGS. Do I have to throw all of those possible chicks away?

ugh! Sorry, so many questions, but so in need of advice.Thanks again,
Sasha

 

[sashanellie]

Hi again,
I tried to take pics, but it's harder than I thought! The younger ones kept running away, but my old girls sat for the pose. So, here goes. Still sick. Third day of antibiotics. Still clear very wet diarrhea. Still hunched, and dried white butts. The guinea hen at the top pic is pictured to show that all the hens have started this fluffed, arched butt thing. The young chickens and the guinea hens. Is this normal?


This is one of the younger hens, starting to get the ugly butt.


This is one of the older hens in better shape to show the normal red color of the girls combs.


This is a horrible attempt at showing you the diarrhea. Sorry.




The hunched and pale and puffed older hen.


Same hen from the back.


Pale legs, too. and the thick fluffy white baby feathers in the back.




I do appreciate any response. I know the pics are not great.

 

[luckyclucky]

This is going on with one of our chickens too! Following..

 

[Elaine Elder]

Where are you located?
Georgia has a state Poultry Lab.
Im waiting for answers to see if i can swab my own birds and send the swabs back to them for testing.
2 years ago. I had all the answers. Now i have all the questions.
18 months ago i purchased a flock of 30 barnevelders. From 3 to 16 weeks old. I had to cull all but one. Then all my previously well chickens started getting sick. I culled over 20 of my own. Finally i reached a point that there were no chickens hunched in a corner, with feathers ruffled up, clear liqid ran out of some noses, some coughed, some sneezed. They got picked on by hatchling mates. They got picked on by younger chickens. They just sat looking like frizzle statues. Everything they did was in slow motion. Or they would look fine and just drop dead Tylan is supposedly the only cure. I cleared out a horse stall and put all the sick ones in it. I put Tylan powder in their water and gave each an injection to boost the start of treatment. (2 different Tylan-1 for injection I did 1cc per bird just under the skin. The powder mixes well with one cup warm water when its disolved, mix in gallon water container.) I did 7 dsy treatment with probiotics to support digestive system

After that I did not lose another bird.
Last month I found out my birds have Mycoplasma Gallisepticum. All of my symptoms fit.

Google MG in chickens
or i posted a thread about Mycoplasma Gallisepticum on this site under illnesses
if you can, get them tested

 

[sashanellie]

I'm in upstate NY. I will look up the MG, thanks. I don't want to get my hopes up, but this is the 5th day on the broad spectrum antibiotic and I THINK I did not see wet diarrhea this morning under the worst off hen. I have to bring her inside and wash off her dried caked butt feathers so I can see if it's still going on. I hope this is working...I would love to get back to silly chicken antics like trying to balance off the deck to reach the bird feeder....!

sasha

 

[Fancychooklady]

When was the last time you wormed your flock and what product did you use ?
Mucky back ends could indicate a worm infestation or pasty butt. Usually with pasty butt the excretion is whitish in colour.

 

[sashanellie]

Hi, I have never wormed them. I have, though, followed them around like a crazy person, checking for wormy signs. I also, like a crazy person, clean their coop every single day. No signs of worms. Would there be worms without visible signs? What should I look for?

 

[Fancychooklady]

Hi, I have never wormed them. I have, though, followed them around like a crazy person, checking for wormy signs. I also, like a crazy person, clean their coop every single day. No signs of worms. Would there be worms without visible signs? What should I look for?

Mucky bottoms is a good sign. A heavy burden of worms can kill a chicken. With the pale combs and wattles I would worm them once then again in 10 days . I would also dust them for lice and mites. Once you have completed the treatment a good poultry multi vitamin added to their water will go a long way to seeing them ' bright eyed and bushy tailed ' again.

 

[sashanellie]

Thanks - I guess I will have to try the wormer, but I don't see any worms anywhere, so I am concerned about worming unnecessarily...maybe I could just worm the one chicken who is the worst off? How do I do that?
Thanks again all.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Thanks - I guess I will have to try the wormer, but I don't see any worms anywhere, so I am concerned about worming unnecessarily...maybe I could just worm the one chicken who is the worst off?  How do I do that?
Thanks again all.

Chickens can be host to several worms and most will only be detected by the outward condition of the bird. Even once you have wormed you might not see or recognise parasites. Safeguard or valbazen are good products and cover more than just round worm.
You could always take a feacal sample to the vet if you are concerned about wormers.
I routinely worm my entire flock every 3-4 months.
Safeguard is a goat wormer and is available at tractor supply stores.
For bantams the dosage is 1/4 ml 3 days in a row , with a 14 day withdrawal on eggs.

http://t.tractorsupply.com/en/store/safe-guardreg;-goat-dewormer-125-ml