Found a lost chicken, mild concern for her health

[FreeChicken!]

My friend found a hen wandering the streets in town two days ago. He's searching around in hopes of finding the owner, and in the meantime I'm looking after her because I have many years of chicken experience and if we can't find her home, she can live with my flock after a quarantine.

She looks to me like an Isa Brown, and a rather underweight one. She weighed 3 lbs, 13 oz when I brought her home, and has a very prominent keel. So my guess is that she's been wandering on her own for a while. How she didn't get nabbed by a predator, hit by a car, or picked up by another pedestrian on such a busy road is beyond me.

She's a bit shy but easy to handle, behaving normally, laying eggs, has a great appetite.

My only concern is that she spends much of her time panting and walking around with her wings drooping slightly. It's not hot in here lately -- 75 at the highest. She's panting right now and it's only 68. So I don't believe she's overheating. What are other potential causes, and should I be concerned about anything?

 

[sourland]

The panting may be a stress thing, but I would still keep her in quarantine.

 

[EuroChook]

My friend found a hen wandering the streets in town two days ago. He's searching around in hopes of finding the owner, and in the meantime I'm looking after her because I have many years of chicken experience and if we can't find her home, she can live with my flock after a quarantine.

She looks to me like an Isa Brown, and a rather underweight one. She weighed 3 lbs, 13 oz when I brought her home, and has a very prominent keel. So my guess is that she's been wandering on her own for a while. How she didn't get nabbed by a predator, hit by a car, or picked up by another pedestrian on such a busy road is beyond me.

She's a bit shy but easy to handle, behaving normally, laying eggs, has a great appetite.

My only concern is that she spends much of her time panting and walking around with her wings drooping slightly. It's not hot in here lately -- 75 at the highest. She's panting right now and it's only 68. So I don't believe she's overheating. What are other potential causes, and should I be concerned about anything?

Isa Brown! Prominent keel, panting, could be deficiency, most likely so if she has been on the lam for a time. Dehydration, heat stress, even over supply of vit D will cause low protein and prominent keel. Wings are slightly out from body. The girl is hot, number 1 in my estimation.

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

How’s your wanderer doing?

 

[EuroChook]

How’s your wanderer doing?

Yes. I am wondering too.

 

[FreeChicken!]

Sorry for the late reply! She's doing very well! Still panting and wing drooping sometimes but less often. She's very active and wants to wander, I wish I could let her out of her quarantine pen! At least she won't have to stay there for too long haha.

No luck finding the owner so far (though it turns out several people are missing chickens in town lately) so it's most likely that she'll be staying with me. Something else that we've realized over the week is that the side of town she was found in doesn't seem to have any chicken coops. The houses are too close together to fit one. There are plenty of coops across the canal, but I have no idea how she could have crossed the canal on her own if she came from over there! I imagine the high-traffic lift bridge would be too scary for a chicken to venture onto. Very strange.

 

[ksbkeys]

Sorry for the late reply! She's doing very well! Still panting and wing drooping sometimes but less often. She's very active and wants to wander, I wish I could let her out of her quarantine pen! At least she won't have to stay there for too long haha.

No luck finding the owner so far (though it turns out several people are missing chickens in town lately) so it's most likely that she'll be staying with me. Something else that we've realized over the week is that the side of town she was found in doesn't seem to have any chicken coops. The houses are too close together to fit one. There are plenty of coops across the canal, but I have no idea how she could have crossed the canal on her own if she came from over there! I imagine the high-traffic lift bridge would be too scary for a chicken to venture onto. Very strange.

Maybe someone dropped her off. I ended up with a rooster that way once!

 

[LaFleche]

Did she already lay an egg? If not, the panting might be related to reproductive issues as often happens with production hybrids.