Golden Comet sick?

[dmarchicken]

Hello,

I have a two year old GC named Henrietta Hoppington. She’s a little gimpy, walks with a limp. Lately she’s been sitting a lot.

Took her to the vet and had a full work up. Blood, fecal, xray and Marek’s test.

Blood work showed she is anemic and had some elevated liver enzymes. X-Ray showed nothing, fecal was good and no Marek’s.

Sometimes her comb gets a bit pale but then it seems to recover. She eats and drinks normally. Poop is pretty normal, she did have some diarrhea at first but that is cleared up.

She definitely has some reproductive issues. Egg shells are thin, occasionally laying a completely soft egg, eggs have lumps on them, sometimes lumps on the inside of the shell.

Not sure what is going on with her. I have her isolated, she’s been living in the house now.

Anyone have any advice on what I can do for her?

 

[Eggcessive]

Mareks tests are seldom available by vets, because they are usually done on birds after death when tissue or feather shafts are examined. A few labs can do blood testing, but that is sent off to a specialty lab. Do you see any bumblefoot scabs on her feet pads?

If her liver enzymes are elevated, that might go along with a reproductive disorder, such as salpingitis or egg yolk peritonitis, where the liver may be involved. Ascites or an enlarged water belly can be a sign. Hens with reproductive disorders or ascites may walk with a wide stance, prefer to sit or lie down, and may have a lowered tail. They can have runny poops, messy vents, and the normally white caps in their poo can look yellowish from bile.

Since he eggs shells have been abnormal or soft, giving her a human calcium citrate 600mg tablet with vitamin D3 for a week might benefit her. Just pop the tablet into her beak to swallow. You can get it at most drug stores or Walmart. She is a little young for problems, but reproductive issues can be more common after 2 years of age. Giving a little Poultry Cell or NutriDrench 2 ml daily might help with her anemia.