Fever Lethargy Diarrhea Not Eating Not drinking

[abbaschickens]

I have a frizzle hen that is about 2 years old. A week ago she was not acting normal. She is housed in her own patio area. She lays and sleeps in the our home. If she is in the main flock she losses her feathers in mating, etc.

1. She has never laid a hard shelled egg.
2. She lays the soft shelled egg and eats them daily.
3. Her standard food is layna pellets, scratch and oats.
4. She scratches in the grassy areas of the patio and eats the bugs she finds. She can and does eat on the mint, roses and petunias planted in the patio area.

5. When she got sick, she was hot so checked fever and it was 106.9 which was approximately 3 - 4 degrees above normal.
6. Chicken lady at feed store recommended injects of Tylan. Frizzle has received 2 of those 72 hours apart.
7. Dyramycin 10 is in her water but she has stopped eating and drinking.
8. Force fed and watered for several days. Feed baby food (meat and pasta) diluted with gatorade. She did not like this and just pooped out as diarrhea.
9. The crop is not full or lumpy.
10. She has not eaten or drank in two days. She has her head pulled back into her neck and sits under a blanket.

11. Is there any chance of survival? Any ideas what else to try? Should I continue force feeding?

Thank you in advance any help you can provide.

 

[chickenzoo]

Has she ever been wormed? With the high fever I am think an infection of some sorts. She would need an antibiotic, no feed stores carry good ones for chickens except penicillin and Tylan is more for respitory issues. If you have penicillin or a human antibiotic like amoxicillian you can try that. Some pet stores carry penicillin for fish in pill forms. Dissolve one 250 mg pill in a cup of water and give her half cc from a syringe into her mouth. If you can get Baytril from a vet, that is very good for bad infections .i use baby parrot hand feeding formula for feeding illl birds, it's full of good stuff and the watery texture helps hydrate them. If she won't drink you can mix water and a vitamin and inject two ccs under the skin ever few hours. Scrambled eggs are often easy to put in their mouth, rub the back of her head and neck to help her swallow.
Also keep her warm

 

[klmclain1]

X2 on the penicillin! 4 days, IM 1/2cc each day in the breast (alternating sides). Needs to start today (and stop all other antibiotics)! If you don't have it onhand, a vet can give her the first injection and give you the remaining 3 syringes ready to inject and you can do it over the remaining 3 days.. then order it online (the long-lasting kind) and keep it onhand for future needs!

 

[abbaschickens]

Thank you for your responses.

1. She has not been wormed over the winter. But there were no external signs of worms. I have been worming with Wazine. But in the fall I purchased Ivermectin to worm them. I need to do more reading about how to administer this wormer. The box said it is a topical but I do not know if that is for chickens. I will locate those answers before I give to my flock.

2. I did locate penicillin at the local TSC. I have administered 1/2cc tonight. I feed her again. She is really weak tonight. I will keep working with her.

3. I had her covered and warm but I did put her under a small lamp tonight to let her get a little warmer. She felt cool tonight to the touch.

Once again thank you.

 

[klmclain1]

Let us know how she does....

 

[abbaschickens]

Update: She is alive!

I used the penicillin for 4 days and stopped all other antibiotics. She was still laying in the basket under a heat light with her head hung to the side.

I have been force feeding and watering her daily. She is actually learning when I touch her beak to open her mouth.

I wormed her yesterday. It was so strange afterwards. It was like a snake or huge worm was in her throat and craw. She was doing these strange moves and I could see this strange line/tube like thing under the skin. I do not know if it was a vein or what. I had high hopes it was a huge worm and she would be perkier today. She is a little but very little. She has stood up in the basket a few times today. But she was less eager to take the food and water.

She has had several watery green/yellow/ tan bowel movements. They have no form just liquid.

So I am at a wait and see what happens now. Any other ideas?

Thanks for the previous help and any future help.

 

[abbaschickens]

One other item is that her neck seems bent to the side. She does not hold her head up straight. Could this be a symptom? She always used to hold her head up. Or is this just part of the illness. I have been including vitamins in the food to try to keep her strenght up.

 

[flowerchild59]

What did you use to worm her? Please read though my link about worming and parasites as it has alot of information.
I would worm her with valbazen, twice. Then I would put her on neomycin. Chances are she has an Ecoli infection from the worms in her gut. Info in link regarding this also.

I was just wondering why you are trying to save a hen that has never given you a decent egg and or eats them??????? I am more of a farmer than a pet owner though.
You should worm your whole flock as they are infected too most likely. They just aren't as symptomatic yet.

 

[abbaschickens]

I will follow the link. I wormed with Wazine 17, that is what I could get locally. I am more of a pet person. We have lost all of two of favorites to hawks in the last month. Frizzle is not in the general population. She is a house chicken. She is on the patio out the front door during the day and sleeps in garage/shop at night. She sits with my husband when he smokes and she is really a pet. If she gets into the house she chases the cats. I guess the real reason is she is a pet and we could not handle the loss of another favorite so soon.

Tonight's update is she is doing better. She is standing more than sitting in the basket and she is fighting when she is done with being feed.

I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate your help. We would have lost her long ago without your help. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I will keep posting.

 

[abbaschickens]

We lost her today.