Does this hen look ill?

[Ruby Mia]

i have 2 bantams whick stick together 24/7, but latelly while one of them is walking round being very active the other one is just lying down all the time looking very sad. her comb is looking very dull and small unlike my other one whoes is looking very bright and big. they both went broody a couple of weeks ago and one of them has just started laying, but i think the sad one still isnt. i havnt seen her eating much as she is lying round all day, but she still comes when i call them for treats. here are some pics;

the sad one.

the sad one

her sister

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I'd consider worms, and mites/lice for starters. It isn't normal for a hen to lie around all day...something's up with her for sure.

 

[Michael Apple]

The comb shriveling often represents dehydration or illness. How old is the hen? Check the hen's backside and see if it is clean or not. What do the droppings look like (be descriptive). What do you feed them? Do they have access to clean water all the time or is there runoff or stagnant, dirty water they may have access to? ChickensAreSweet mentioned worms. Have you ever wormed them? Do you ever supplement their water with vitamins/probiotics? If so, how often?

 

[Ruby Mia]

the hen is about 1 year old and we gave all our hens a bath not that long ago (which she hated) so she is very clean. her droppings are normal, but we have run out of layers pellets so they have been eating chick crumbs for 2 days which i guess she might hate and perhaps hasnt been eating for 2 days which might be the problem, but they did free range yesturday so they had grass. their water is changed daily. ive wormed wormed them 2 or 3 times, the last about a month ago. te only time i added vitamins to their water was when i had my first two chickens so she wasnt around then. she also did get up and walk round a little with her sister this evening which is improvement.

 

[Michael Apple]

the hen is about 1 year old and we gave all our hens a bath not that long ago (which she hated) so she is very clean. her droppings are normal, but we have run out of layers pellets so they have been eating chick crumbs for 2 days which i guess she might hate and perhaps hasnt been eating for 2 days which might be the problem, but they did free range yesturday so they had grass. their water is changed daily. ive wormed wormed them 2 or 3 times, the last about a month ago. te only time i added vitamins to their water was when i had my first two chickens so she wasnt around then. she also did get up and walk round a little with her sister this evening which is improvement.

Check the crop to see if it feels impacted or swollen. Chickens will gorge themselves on grass or soil sometimes. I prefer to keep grass cut short and provide grit in the diet to avoid impacted crops. Chickens should be off starter and on a layer ration at about 20 weeks of age. I doubt starter crumbles for two days is the problem unless it is old/rancid feed. I don't like to store more feed than I use in a month and keep it stored in a cool area of the barn in galvanized cans with tight lids. I'm glad to hear you change the water daily. Many people overlook the importance of that. Look in the back of the bird's throat too and see if there's any cheesy-plaque looking stuff sticking to the walls of the throat (caused by canker).

When you wormed the birds, what did you use as a wormer, and what dosage?

I supplement water with high quality vitamins-minerals and probiotics 3 times a week. Animal proteins are also superior to the plant proteins in feed. Once a week or so, I offer some salmon/tuna with no salt or buttermilk mixed with some crumbles to make a wet mash for my mature birds.This is especially important with an older flock. After months of doing this I noticed improvement some time ago.

The Greens aka Blue Comb aka Mud Fever aka Summer Disease could be the problem. Crop bound is common with this because it is truly enteritis. Digestion is interrupted and the crop doesn't empty quick enough. Sudden changes in weather/ feed can cause this as well as bad wheat. Common treatment is 1cc of LA-200 or 1/2cc Gentamicin (if you can get it) injected into the breast muscle morning and evening for 3-5 days. To treat water, mix equal parts Neomycin and Bacitricin (BMD soluble) together dry in a jar. Give 1 tsp per gallon of water for 10 days.

It could also be Coccidiosis which requires treatment of Corid 9.6% liquid at 2 tsp per gallon of water, or Corid 20% powder at 1 tsp per gallon of water.

Let me know what you observe before I list too much more, lol.

 

[Ruby Mia]

the crop feels normal just like her sisters. we use a 1% medicated domestic poultry wormer powder which is really good. i gave her some scrambled egg today and i also think that she is molting as you can see all her new feathers coming through, do you think this could be the problem? she feels quite boney compared to her sisters, so i thaught mabie because she is the lowest of the pecking order she is perhaps feeling a little scared to walk over to the others and get some food, but when i put food and water by her she turned away from it. she is walking around a lot more today though so mabie it is just to do with moltong, what do you think?