Finicky chicken or health issue!

[PhenixJiRa]

Are your hens confined to a run?
If so, do the have access to grit and oyster shell?
Is her crop full or empty each evening? Is it empty or squishy in the morning?
What type worms are you feeding? (I believe that earthworms can be a vector for parasitic worms.)
@dawg53 posted the instruction for the flush that you mentioned. She may have some insight.
Also tagging the medical team
@Eggcessive @azygous @Wyorp Rock

Thanks!
I let them out into the yard in the morning and the evening. They have grit and oyster shells, and chicken shells, available.
Because I let them out into the yard they find worms and she devours them.
I did the flush approximately four weeks ago and she acts normal other than the fact she won’t eat her chicken feed and other things like spaghetti squash that she used to love. She also won’t lay an egg.
Yesterday she ate very little because I did not help her dig for worms. She pretty much only had very small pieces of beets covered in yogurt. I’m trying to get her to eat the chicken feed by not supplying her with other items.
My fear is that she will just not eat anything and starve. But I can’t really continue feeding her the extra items all the time not only because of the expense and the time involved but also I don’t think it will be good for her long-term.

 

[PhenixJiRa]

This morning I let the chickens out and she wandered around the yard searching for food. They are now back in their pen and she ignores the chicken feed and pecked out the spaghetti squash without eating it. She did eat some scrambled eggs.

I keep thinking there’s something wrong inside her throat. Either it’s scratched and didn’t heal correctly or maybe there’s a tumor. Get into a vet where I am is practically impossible because they are only available one day a week and then it’s $80 or more to walk in the door.

The way things are going I fear she will simply starve herself.

 

[aart]

What kind of feed do you buy, brand and model or link?
She won't starve herself if you only give her one option to eat.

Try this for a couple days:

Isolate bird in a wire cage within the coop for a day or two....so I can closely monitor:
-their intake of food and water,
-crop function(checking at night and in morning before providing more feed),
-and their poops.
Feel their abdomen, from below vent to between legs, for squishy or hard swelling.
Check for external parasites or any other abnormalities.


Best to put crate right in coop or run so bird is still 'with' the flock.
I like to use a fold-able wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller mesh(1x2) on bottom of crate under tray.
Then you can put tray underneath crate to better observe droppings without it being stepped in. If smaller mesh is carefully installed, tray can still be used inside crate.

 

[PhenixJiRa]

Thanks for the idea!
Yesterday I felt a small marble sized lump at the base of the crop. That hasn’t been there the entire time but maybe periodically.

I called a local feed store and they suggested something might be stuck right there making it’s sore when she eats. I already tried giving her olive oil but maybe I need to give her even more.

It’s been four weeks of me feeding her softer items which is why I’ve resorted to wondering if this was ever going to go away.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Look her over for lice/mites, while you do that, take note of any pin feathers coming in that might indicate molt. Feel her crop when she goes to roost, then again in the morning before she's had anything to eat/drink. Let us know what the crop feels like in the morning.

Can you take a sample of her poop to a vet for a fecal float to see if worms might be an issue?

Photos of her and her poop are always welcome.

 

[PhenixJiRa]

Look her over for lice/mites, while you do that, take note of any pin feathers coming in that might indicate molt. Feel her crop when she goes to roost, then again in the morning before she's had anything to eat/drink. Let us know what the crop feels like in the morning.

Can you take a sample of her poop to a vet for a fecal float to see if worms might be an issue?

Photos of her and her poop are always welcome.

During the last week she started losing some feathers, not many yet. She did not eat much yesterday so her crop was small. This morning it was completely flat and the bump I thought was there before was gone.

Her poop has the same general look of a normal chicken dropping but very runny.

She still does not have any interest in the chicken feed but likes other food as long as it is soft or easy to eat like a worm. I was wondering if she was just being picky but I’m just not sure.

I gave her small bits of cucumber covered in yogurt and she ate a couple of those but ate mostly yogurt. If I try to give her little bits of steak, she will eat that. So I keep thinking she’s just being a prima donna and yet I’m afraid she’s going to wither away because she’s not eating like the others are.

I’m at the point of just wondering if I give them just chicken feed and water and hope for the best.

 

[PhenixJiRa]

Sadly this turned out to be a broken egg inside her from a few weeks back. Sounds like I did the flush too late or incorrectly. Thinking back to times when I would see her laying eggs, it seemed to be a struggle for her and possibly painful. The last time she tried to lay it was very hot outside and things went down from there. In the future I will avoid that breed (Sagitta) as it’s a dual purpose heavy breed that can lay large eggs. I think she just never lived up to that ability.

So glad I joined this site. Lots of great advice!

 

[janiedoe]

Sadly this turned out to be a broken egg inside her from a few weeks back. Sounds like I did the flush too late or incorrectly. Thinking back to times when I would see her laying eggs, it seemed to be a struggle for her and possibly painful. The last time she tried to lay it was very hot outside and things went down from there. In the future I will avoid that breed (Sagitta) as it’s a dual purpose heavy breed that can lay large eggs. I think she just never lived up to that ability.

So glad I joined this site. Lots of great advice!

I'm sorry things didn't turn out better. I hope you have good luck with the rest of the flock.

 

[PhenixJiRa]

I'm sorry things didn't turn out better. I hope you have good luck with the rest of the flock.

Thank you. I’m sad about it but also somewhat relieved that it was figured out and didn’t go further. It’s a good lesson for me and will help me determine breeds for the future.