- Apr 20, 2013
- 5
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- 65
I have a two year old leghorn hen with the following symptoms: drooping tail, wings held low, lethargic, drooping comb with dark coloring at the top, not really eating though she did peck at a cherry tomato and drank some water last night.. She does not have any respitory distress, skin issues, or discharges but she does have watery poop - mostly white. I found a bit of yellowish poop in the cage she is in this morning. Yesterday I was sure she was a goner but then she got startled and then perked up, drank water hopped about, had her tail up and pecked at that tomato. This morning she is laying low again. It has been really cold here (it was 6 degrees this am) so we brought her in to the entryway of our house when we found her sickly yesterday afternoon. Doesn't seem like a stuck egg to me - no sign of that. No crop issues.. Could be a heart condition brought on by the stress of the cold weather? Could be an internal layer perhaps as her belly does feel big, soft and round. I can not figure out what, if anything to do for her..I don't want to stress her out with a bath and blow dry if that won't really help. I've read everything I can on line and I'm stuck..so I turn to you backyard chicken pals....help? Do I put her back with her pals in the coop? Could she be contagious to them? Do I give her olive oil and Epsom salts just too see if it helps? Do I just let her be and see what happens? If she is an internal layer and has an infection in there...is it worth treating? Is it kindest to put her down.? Any help would be great..
