Ex batt.trying to make sound nothing coming out. Watery poo may have cough.

[Grandma 333]

Very worried, am a total newbie. This hen was the smallest of 4. She has put on weight and visibly grown. Today, her 4th day, she looks as if she's trying to make noise but no sound is coming out. She is closing her eyes a lot. She has watery poo today. It may be coincidence but she has made a sound like a cough or a sneeze 2 or 3 times today only. Up to now she has been thriving and well.

Took her to a neighbour who keeps hens. He has said her eyes are bright. There's not an egg stuck and her crop feels ok. He mentioned crop was under half full, a bit empty. He doesn't think she needs the vet. I put the hens on a crumble half mash type food. They had been used to layers mash.

Not sure what their poop should look like. It's a bit on the soft sticky side, and this is the first watery we've had. She just doesn't seem right to me. I've noticed it straight away which would indicate something is wrong. Vets are closed, any advice would be welcome. Not long until shops shut if medicine is required. Hope someone can help. I could be overreacting being a first timer.....thanks...Alison.

 

[so lucky]

Hopefully someone will pitch in, someone who has chicken doctoring experience. The only thing I can suggest is to make sure she stays hydrated; you may want to offer her something with electrolytes. And make sure she doesn't get chilled. Scrambled egg is good to offer chickens who aren't eating much.

 

[Kiki]

How long have you had these birds?
Did you deworm them when you got them?
Can you get pictures of fresh poop?


Coccidiosis is another thing that comes to mind.
Is a vet an option?

 

[Grandma 333]

Hopefully someone will pitch in, someone who has chicken doctoring experience. The only thing I can suggest is to make sure she stays hydrated; you may want to offer her something with electrolytes. And make sure she doesn't get chilled. Scrambled egg is good to offer chickens who aren't eating much.

Thankyou for your reply. She now has a very definite wheeze and you can see she is breathing heavily. She appears to be sneezing. I am able to have a vet appointment tomorrow lunch time. In the meantime, I have brought her into the house. I gave her water with ACV and garlic in, by syringe. She perked up after this and started drinking from the feeder by herself. She is eating her feed. The wheeze is quite loud and I am worried but glad to see her perk up a wee bit. The difficulty with my girls is that they've never had anything to eat apart from the layers mash. They so far haven't touched any fresh veggies. It's still early days though. Thankyou so much for your kind suggestions.....Alison.

 

[Grandma 333]

How long have you had these birds?
Did you deworm them when you got them?
Can you get pictures of fresh poop?


Coccidiosis is another thing that comes to mind.
Is a vet an option?

Thankyou for your kind reply. I have only had the hens since Wednesday. 4 days tomorrow. They were all wormed and treated for lice etc before I got them. They were also vet checked. She was well as far as I knew until I saw her this morning. As soon as I saw her I could see and feel that she was unwell. The products used on the hens before I got them were all natural, non chemical by the rescue people. I have noticed her poop looks better, it seems to be formed in a wee shape. I can't say she is well, the wheeze is loud and her breathing heavy. She is however calm and settled and hopefully will get over this bump in the road....It is cold and wet here in Scotland. The hens do have shelter from the rain and haven't got wet however, the ground is cold and wet. Wee soul may have caught a chill? I'm imagining she's going to get antibiotics tomorrow. This will bring down her immune system so I'm unsure if this would be good or not. When all's said and done, I want to make sure she gets the best help possible. She's already done the hard bit, surviving the battery experience. She was doing so well. Thankyou for your help. I'll let you know what the vet says....Alison.

 

[Grandma 333]

Thankyou for your kind reply. I have only had the hens since Wednesday. 4 days tomorrow. They were all wormed and treated for lice etc before I got them. They were also vet checked. She was well as far as I knew until I saw her this morning. As soon as I saw her I could see and feel that she was unwell. The products used on the hens before I got them were all natural, non chemical by the rescue people. I have noticed her poop looks better, it seems to be formed in a wee shape. I can't say she is well, the wheeze is loud and her breathing heavy. She is however calm and settled and hopefully will get over this bump in the road....It is cold and wet here in Scotland. The hens do have shelter from the rain and haven't got wet however, the ground is cold and wet. Wee soul may have caught a chill? I'm imagining she's going to get antibiotics tomorrow. This will bring down her immune system so I'm unsure if this would be good or not. When all's said and done, I want to make sure she gets the best help possible. She's already done the hard bit, surviving the battery experience. She was doing so well. Thankyou for your help. I'll let you know what the vet says....Alison.

Hi There!
Wee Missy, the sick hen is fully well again. She had a respiratory infection. She had to be separated from her wee flock (4 including her). She received antibiotic injection on Sunday and had found her voice again by Monday. She was eating and drinking well by Monday, no more syringes of water needed. In the summerhouse by day and the living room by night she is finally back with her flock after a second injection today. She was fine going back. The other girls just accepted her and she was scoffing all the food unhindered. Peeked in at them tonight and they are all in a row, with her in the middle keeping warm. Thankyou for your kindness. Being new to chicken keeping I was worried more especially. It helped to know that others were there to talk to...Thankyou...Alison.

 

[Kiki]

Hi There!
Wee Missy, the sick hen is fully well again. She had a respiratory infection. She had to be separated from her wee flock (4 including her). She received antibiotic injection on Sunday and had found her voice again by Monday. She was eating and drinking well by Monday, no more syringes of water needed. In the summerhouse by day and the living room by night she is finally back with her flock after a second injection today. She was fine going back. The other girls just accepted her and she was scoffing all the food unhindered. Peeked in at them tonight and they are all in a row, with her in the middle keeping warm. Thankyou for your kindness. Being new to chicken keeping I was worried more especially. It helped to know that others were there to talk to...Thankyou...Alison.

Thank you for the update!
I'm glad she is feeling better.

Did the vet mention which infection she has?
Did he swab her throat to test?


Did he mention that some illnesses come back around?
Keep an eye out for the others to start showing the same symptoms or even her again in the future.

 

[Grandma 333]

Thank you for the update!
I'm glad she is feeling better.

Did the vet mention which infection she has?
Did he swab her throat to test?


Did he mention that some illnesses come back around?
Keep an eye out for the others to start showing the same symptoms or even her again in the future.

Oh Dear, no he didn't do any of these things. Just said it was respiratory infection. 28 days before eggs are safe, although he said if they were just for us then 7 days. I did ask what antibiotic he gave but he didn't tell me. He listened to her chest and checked her over. She made a quick recovery after the first injection. I shall certainly keep an eye on them all and do hope things are going to be ok. It was very worrying!..Thanks for being there...Alison.