depressed but still voracious forager

[craftymelissa]

I will see how she is tomorrow. Today she was goobling up all sorts of bugs in the garden including several worms and a daddy long legs. But later in the evening she only slurped a little of the water from her mushy food. And maybe a few dried meal worms.

While yesterday she free foraged, ate some meal worms and large amount of mushy food.

 

[craftymelissa]

She is a lot more listless this morning. She would just stand wherever I plopped her. But when I did put her in the garden bed, she started drinking rain water off the broccoli leaves and then taking a few nibbles. So I made her some mushy food. She drinks a little, falls asleep, drinks a little, falls asleep . . .


I will probably still try worming her but I think her Earthly life is coming to an end.

Could the stress of the mites have caused her to be more suspectible to bacteria that caused the probable peritonitis?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

What a lovely photo

Peritonitis is when eggs or egg matter travels back up the oviduct and drops into the abdomen which in turn causes infection. The mites could have weakened her further, but once a hen starts having reproductive problems the clock starts ticking.

I'm so sorry, I wish I had better answers. I can tell she is well loved.

 

[craftymelissa]

She is still hanging in there. Listless all day yesterday and then up and moving in the evening. It was the first really hot and humid day of the summer. Trying to keep her hydrated with watermelon. And holding back on the regular food because of her crop problems.

Our 2 day delivery order of Acidified Copper Sulfate still has not arrived. But we gave her first dose of Safeguard Wormer. Our Fleet Farm did not have Wayzine.


The left side of her abdomen is definitely firmer and hard compared to the right. What part of her anatomy would that be? An oviduct? Gizzard? Kidney? I didn't have luck searching in the forums.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm glad she is still hanging in there.

Safeguard is a better choice for deworming, imho, it will take care of more worms. Wazine will only treat roundworms.

It's hard to know what could be making one side firmer than the other. She may have a whole egg in there (shell and all), tumors, cancer, etc.

I've included some links for you, but they are considered "graphic". Some people don't like to see these things, but I find the more you can find out the better. Of course we are all just backyard keepers, but we do try to figure things out. Sometimes one person may call things a different name, that's why a lot of us lump Peritonitis, Ascites and Salpingitis together at times. Ascites is a fluid filled abdomen which you will see, Peritonitis is where eggs (whole eggs too) are dropped into the abdomen and Salpingitis is an inflammation of the oviduct which can cause fluid or "caseous exudes" - sometimes a hen lays "lash eggs", but these "cooked eggs" can be in the abdomen as well.

I hope I'm not too confusing.

***WARNING**** The following links show necropsy photos
Anatomy:
http://kenanaonline.com/files/0073/73747/CHICKEN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY.pdf

"Internal Laying/Reproductive Disorder" Necropsy photos
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/egg-yolk-peritonitis.1154532/#post-18103856
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...nd-eyp-very-graphic-necropsy-pictures.821240/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...pened-her-to-find-this.1113538/#post-17145142

 

[craftymelissa]

Thanks. I'm not confused just perplexed by her condition. Other chickens we have that died deteriorated much more quickly and we're euthanized. She just seems to have some life in her.



If it is worms how long before we see any sign of improvement?

She is back to the headshaking again perhaps because her crop feels uncomfortable?

The acidified copper sulfate finally came. I added some of the solution to the mushy watermelon for her.

But otherwise I am not giving her any other food ( besides the few bugs she forages) until her crop goes down.

I know that the watermelon is the sugary but I wanted her have some hydration and she wouldn't drink the plain water.