Fecal Report back, my Vet is Unavailable - Can anyone translate this?

[Wyorp Rock]

I did not test for parasites - my vet requested a fecal sample because this hen has been sick with diarrhea and lethargy for almost a month now. Just over 3 weeks ago, vet felt a small mass inside her, assumed it was reproductive, withdrew clear fluid out of her, and put her on Clavamox. 6 days later - there was no improvement. I switched to Baytril which my vet will not prescribe for chickens. However, vet said she was improving on Baytril when, 4 days later, she had follow-up visit. During visit, vet could NO LONGER feel the internal mass and said - I thought it was reproductive - let's get a stool sample to see if it is something else. Meanwhile, this hen has declined, she has stopped eating - I forced some Sav-a-Chick electrolytes and probiotic water into her this morning and am preparing to force mash into her. She is very weak. Vet is off today but stool sample came back and I wanted it read. I honestly think it may be to late for this hen. Can anyone recommend a drastic remedy. This hen, and her brother, the white rooster in my profile photo, are all I have left from my original flock of 9. I took her off Baytril yesterday.

Yes - it is the same bird. This is my Beanie Baby (yep, that's her name). Throughout all of this - she has still been eating and drinking. It's just within the last 2 days, those have decreased. As I type this, she just ate some crumbled walnuts out of my husbands' hand. earlier, she had several sips of SAV-A-CHICK probiotic/electrolyte water. I want to help her but don't know where to turn. I have the Safeguard dosage ready to give her. Poor thing - she has had antibiotics for almost a month straight. Baytril seemed to be working at first.

As always, thanks to all for the advice. My hen is just over 2 lbs - I figure 1/2 ml. is a good dosage of safeguard,,,but,,,is it once or twice a day?

I'm sorry she is not doing well.

As mentioned, you can try treating her for the Capillary worms to see if that helps.
Often there is more than one thing going on. If she has a reproductive problem, then she is already weak, so a worm load would drag her down further.
Worming her may not help at all, but if she is in a state of severe decline it may be worth a shot.
Since you have Fenbendazole (Safeguard) on hand, that is what I would use. Dosage is .23ml per pound of weight given orally for 5 days in a row.
If your hen is 2lbs, give her .50ml once a day for 5 days.

Of course, since she is under vet care, it's always a good idea to consult them, but it seems they are not available at the moment(?) so you will have to make the call whether to treat or not.

I hope this helps and she starts to improve.

 

[Sue Gremlin]

@Eggcessive @Sue Gremlin @casportpony

I believe that means Capillary worms, but could be wrong.

It does. Capillarid is a broad term for worm eggs that look like the attached.
The report also means your chickens don't have giardia, and that there were only a few capillarid eggs that are probably not the cause of the diarrhea you're seeing. The recommendation from the diagnostic lab is for further diagnostics for viral diseases.

 

[Sue Gremlin]

Do you even want to worm, for that small a load?

Agree. The path report says there are just a few that aren't of consequence. I wouldn't deworm based on this report.

 

[Eggcessive]

Just so you are aware, I don’t think that any of the common wormers we use in chickens to treat worms are approved for chickens. Valbazen is a sheep/cattle wormer while SafeGuard is for goats. But if you have a 2 week egg withdrawal after the last dose, the eggs are perfectly safe to eat. However your vet may or may not approve of those meds, since they are not approved for chickens. Many people use them safely though.

 

[cocoloco]

You are not going to believe this - We have been so busy feeling her crop, I did not notice she has a lump under her beak. My husband thought THAT was the crop he told me she was moving it from left to right. It is pretty big - I just looked down her throat - it looks like a canker sore. How do I deal with this?

 

[cocoloco]

She is moving it around - when I looked in her throat - bile was coming up. She I hold her at an angle?

 

[moniquem]

http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/capillaria-worms

This is a really good article

 

[Eggcessive]

Can you get any pictures of the lump?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You are not going to believe this - We have been so busy feeling her crop, I did not notice she has a lump under her beak. My husband thought THAT was the crop he told me she was moving it from left to right. It is pretty big - I just looked down her throat - it looks like a canker sore. How do I deal with this?

She is moving it around - when I looked in her throat - bile was coming up. She I hold her at an angle?

I'm sorry.
A photo of the lump and what you see in her throat would be good.

I would be careful holding her at an angle, she may aspirate. If something stinky is coming up - that sounds like her crop has gone sour - could be due to canker or whatever you see inside her beak too.