Found lice and one really sick chicken

[Ryguy3684]

All 10 are 19 week Buff Orpingtons went to let my birds out to free range this evening. One of my girls didn't come out of the coop. She's extremely lethargic. I picked her up to do an exam an found a ton of, what I believe are, lice. I have sprayed down all of them with lice/mite killer, for poultry. It worked because I saw them stop moving. I'll take care of cleaning the coop and run, but my priority is my sick one. We've sprayed her down, dried her off, and fed nutri drench to get some nutrients into her. She seemed cold so we brought the quarantine coop in the house tonight. Is there anything else I can do for her? She's tucking her head under her wing and just sleeping.

 

[Ryguy3684]

She seemed fine this morning, if the timeline helps

 

[dawg53]

It sounds like you've done a very good job with your hen, I wouldve done the same as you.
Keep giving her the Nutri Drench, one drop orally twice a day for no more than 5 days. Anymore than that can cause diarrhea.
Try encouraging her to eat her feed, she needs to get her strength built up. You can put some feed in a bowl and add warm water to it, stir it up and she if she'll eat it on her own.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about hour hen. In a previous thread you had wormed a sick chicken. Is this the same one or another? Did you give her the five days of the wormer or 2 doses 10 days apart. What are you treating the lice with? Does that contain some permethrin?

 

[Ryguy3684]

Sorry about hour hen. In a previous thread you had wormed a sick chicken. Is this the same one or another? Did you give her the five days of the wormer or 2 doses 10 days apart. What are you treating the lice with? Does that contain some permethrin?

No. It's a different chicken. I'm not having a good run of luck lately. I treated them for 5 days with the Safe Gaurd. I'll check the bottle of lice spray. But I don't think it contains permethrin. Is permethrin better to use?

 

[Ryguy3684]

It doesn't look like it contains Permethrine, but I did watch them stop moving and die. I picked some off to double check.

 

[dawg53]

Smothered in the oils killed them...soap helped too.

 

[Ryguy3684]

Smothered in the oils killed them...soap helped too.

Thanks, good to know. In the future, is a physical examination the only way to tell if lice/mites are present, or are there other signs to look out for?

 

[dawg53]

Just pick up a bird every now and then, and inspect it closely for external parasites, especially around the vent area where it's warm and moist. Also look for lice eggs on feather shafts. Coconut oil will remove lice eggs.
Excessive scratching, feather picking or alot of dust bathing can be signs of external parasites.
You can check the coop at night after the birds have gone to sleep. Use a flashlight to inspect the roosts for mites crawling around or other critters and bugs.

 

[Ryguy3684]

She made it through the night. She can keep her eyes open now, and is moving around a little bit. She drank, but haven't gotten her to eat yet. I'm going to try some scrambled eggs in a bit.