down in the dumps hen

[DEBRA56]

One of my Road Island Red hens is down in the dumps the last 2 days. Walking slow and shakes her head more often than the others. They are 13 mos old and for a treat I put them in our garden 2 days ago where they ate LOTS of worms. I have held her massaging her full craw, turned her upside down many times and she still acts like she does not feel good. All others are just fine. I held her yesterday for about 1 1/2 hours and she loved it resting in my lap and closing her eyes alot. I witnessed her drinking and pooping yesterday. Any clues out there?

 

[terryg]

You have a sick hen. If this happened suddenly after free-ranging, she could have gotten into something toxic and eaten too much of it. That happened to a hen of mine. Epsom salts cured it. See how to dose here: http://www.hencam.com/henblog/2011/02/the-epsom-salt-cure/
However, I think that something else is going on. Whenever a hen is sick, if you don't know the cause, it's best to isolate her in order to observe and make sure the other don't either catch what she has or bully her. I have a FAQ about what to do when a hen is sick. http://www.hencam.com/henblog/diagnosing-a-sick-chicken/
Don't keep turning her upside down. Depending on the issue, that could make things worse.
Good luck!

 

[DEBRA56]

Thanks Terri, nothing hazardous in our garden, never use pesticides or other stuff. I think I need to look up "egg-bound" as one of my 5 hens is not laying for 2-3 weeks now.

 

[terryg]

Egg bound doesn't mean "not laying." A truly egg bound hen has an egg stuck in her and you'd know it. She wouldn't be shaking her heard. Isolate the sick hen and at least you'll know if she's laying and eating - sometimes sick hens fake eating just so they don't get bullied.

 

[DEBRA56]

Ya know, I went out there a little while ago and offered her scratch corn, she went wild for a 1/2 tsp full. What do you make of that?

 

[WI FarmChick]

You should maybe post your questions in the
Emergencies / Diseases / Injuries and Cures Section.



you might get more help there. Good luck.

 

[DEBRA56]

Thanks everyone for you input. My "down in the dumps" hen is much much better now. I think by holding her for 1 1/2 hours made her feel all better-lol